The Cradle Will Fall
by Nervous Laughter
Summary: Draco is a changed man, sort of, but no one really knows why or how. After a certain revelation involving Hermione Granger, though, Draco's life is turned upside down...or perhaps right side up...Hermione.Harry.Draco.Lucius.Narcissa. Chapter 17 Up
1. Introduction

**A/N: I've changed some things in the story to make it make a little bit more sense. So, if you want, you can go back and re-read everything. Also, some of the chapters have been divided up. There's also a newer chapter in the middle of the older chapters. Just 'cause! You know, I'm done explaining. You'll figure it out. ;) OH! And because I started the fic before Half-Blood Prince, it's obviously now AU(another universe). If you haven't read HBP yet, don't worry about.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters. All credit must be given to J.K. **

The Cradle Will Fall

Introduction-Hush Little Baby

_I constantly wonder whether my parents still love me. It's stupid, I know. But I can't help but think it, especially since Daniel. My mother understands. I think she does, anyway. She's a woman; she understands me more. My father, though...oh, he doesn't understand at all, I'm positive. It hasn't been the same with us anymore. He's no longer affectionate with me. Not since I gave birth to Daniel. _

When I found out I was pregnant I was horrified—absolutely sick with shocked. I was unsure of what to do; I was so confused. I immediately owled my parents and left for home that same day. They would help me. They always did. They'd support the choices I made.

_My mother was hysterical. 'How could you be pregnant? Have you been having sex?' I suddenly felt like a whore. _

_Seeing my father in tears left an aching in the back of my throat. It stung my eyes with tears of my own. 'No. I—I—' I caught my mother's eye and she suddenly understood. She caught my father's eye and he too understood. She was angry that I hadn't told her sooner. She cried for me, though. _

'Who was it? Please tell me he was removed from the school.' My father said, silently pleading. I could hear my mother sobbing. I couldn't look at them. Instead, I looked out the window and watched a group of teenagers run from the rain.

'I couldn't. I think...maybe he had hit me with something. Maybe over the head. I was in and out of consciousness.' I stuttered as I tried explaining to my parents. I not only felt dirty, but I felt stupid as well.

_A week after all the drama, my parents sent me back to school. They didn't want me out too long, fearing I would drop out altogether. Leaving school was the last thing on my mind. I wanted to be there. _

_When I got back to school it was mid-February and I was about a month along. I didn't show at all. But then, even when I had left for summer holiday I didn't really show. It looked like I had gained a little weight that winter, that's all. I had. This worked to my advantage. I really wanted to keep everything a secret. I was only fifteen, after all. What would my friends say? Not to mention my enemies. _

Things became complicated, though. In the middle of summer I told my parents I was not going back to Hogwarts. When I first found I was pregnant I thought I'd be able to go to school and be normal. I thought everything would be like it was, except with a baby. That summer I realized that my expectations were unrealistic. I didn't want people knowing that I had a child so I was going to leave him with mum and dad while I was at school. The thought of not seeing him for nearly a year bothered me, though. I was already attached to him. I knew I couldn't leave him home with mum and dad. I was staying home.

_I ended up attending a muggle school. No magic, no spells, nothing. The boring life, as I liked to call it. It was hard to pay attention here. Especially right after Daniel was born. _

_I gave birth to my child on September 1st, the day the Hogwarts train left for Hogwarts, and one month too early. I cried until I was able to see him. I wanted to see that he was okay. I had a tendency to think of all the bad scenarios that could happen, which always left me in a ball of frightened stress. _

When the doctors finally let me hold him, I was ecstatic. He was a healthy size, healthier than any baby carried to their full term. I was able to take him home two days later.

_The entire year slugged its way by very slowly. I had a constant feeling of depression that haunted me. Being away from my friends for so long kept me up during the nights. I had only sent one owl to Harry and Ron, telling them to not owl me if they valued our friendship. Well, I guess our friendship was their number one priority because I never got one owl. No birthday card, Christmas cake, or Easter egg. I guess I received what I asked for. Daniel was the only reason that I hadn't done something drastic. He needed me. Or rather, I needed him. Then again, if Daniel hadn't been born I wouldn't have felt the way I did. _

It was about the middle of summer when Dumbledore unexpectedly dropped by. I had my suspicions of him coming to see me, especially after I saw a graying tabby cat watching me through my window.

'I'm hoping to see you back at Hogwarts for your seventh year, Hermione. I'll give you the head girl position.'

'I can't, professor. Daniel—'

'As you know, Miss Granger, the head girl position comes with a private dorm,' The twinkle in Dumbledore's blue eyes promised good things and I could not refuse. 'Hogwarts hasn't been the same.'


	2. Woven With Gold

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters. All credit must be given to J.K. **

The Cradle Will Fall

Chapter 1

'_Here I am. It is September 1st. Daniel is one and I'm on the train to Hogwarts. Thanks to Dumbledore, we have a compartment to ourselves. Daniel is currently running rampant. Ever since he had learned to walk, he never really settled down.' _Hermione slammed her journal shut and sighed.

"Daniel, sit here with your mum." Hermione patted the spot next to her.

"No! Wook!" Daniel squealed and pointed out the window at the fast moving scenery passing by. He began to laugh loudly, jumping up and down. Hermione smile.

"You're so cute." She pulled him into her lap and caressed his chocolate brown hair. '_He has my hair. But those eyes…I don't know anyone with eyes like that.'_ Hermione looked down into Daniel's Neptune blue eyes. They were gorgeous.

"No." Daniel kicked and squirmed his way off her lap. He didn't want to be held.

"Danny, don't kick." She raised her voice then sighed. '_Spoiled brat. That's Mum's fault_.' She thought to herself. Daniel opened his mouth wide in disbelief then glowered at her.

"Do not give me that look, Daniel. Is it bed time for you already?" He shook his head and continued to run rampant.

Hermione handed him a bottle of milk. "Here." He quickly threw it to the ground.

"Fine." She put it back in her bag and pulled out a bottle of juice, which he grabbed quickly out of her hands.

"Now settle down and try to be quiet, all right?" He nodded. Smiling, Hermione pulled out her nearly abandoned wand and did a locking charm on the door, just in case. Sprawling across the seats, she closed her eyes.

* * *

Hermione awoke to the screeches of the train stopping. She sat up in her sat as she rubbed her blurry eyes clear. '_First day back and I'm already behind schedule_.' Frantically, she threw off her clothes and pulled on her Hogwarts' uniform and robes.

"Where's my badge!" She searched through her trunk quickly, but could not find it. She needed to be at Hogwarts before the other students. '_I'm screwed. What an impression I'll make!'_

"Shit. Where—" Hermione smiled.

Daniel was sprawled in the middle of the floor, her head badge clutched tightly in his hand. The badge was a choking hazard, but the sight was adorable.

"Come on." She picked him up and draped a blanket over his head. It was raining outside.

"I'm hope someone can get these." She gave her heavy luggage one last glance before jumping out of the compartment door. Holding Daniel tightly, she ran towards the nearest carriage.

Hermione sighed.

"Home sweet home."

* * *

Arms aching, Hermione let out a breath of relief as she quickly drew closer to her private dorm room. Everything looked as it used to be. Nothing had changed.

"Password?" A very pregnant youth asked.

"That's not funny." Hermione frowned at the portrait's belly. _'The last thing I want in the world right now is for someone to be taunting me.'_

"Oh chill. I was jokin' around." The girl pushed her belly in and began to giggle. "Can't take a joke?"

"Apparently not. Bonetmal." The portrait slowly creaked open, revealing a very large, very stunning room. The ceiling extended up so far up you could hardly see the end. The circular room appeared to be woven with gold and books lined the shelves all the way around the room, appearing to reach towards the ceiling. A fire flickered at the side of the room, splashing flecks of light over the gold, creating a bizarre yet stunning glimmer. It was not normal at all.

Hermione noticed three doors in the room, two appearing wide open, one closed. _'I wonder if the head boy is in?'_ She could feel her cheeks begin to burn as she realized she was still holding Daniel. Taking a large breath, she finally found the nerve to approach the rooms. She checked the one furthest to the left first.

Hermione walked through the doorway slowly, gasping when she was able to view the entire room. A small tinkling lullaby sounded as little trinkets ticked and turned.

It was a nursery. There was a golden rocking horse, a crib, and many toys. There were at least a dozen clocks that lined the walls of the room, ticking to their own rhythm, unaware of one another. They all read different times, which confused Hermione.

In the corner of the room someone was rocking slowly in a chair.

"A house elf?" The elf stood up very suddenly and bowed low.

"Dumbledore said I would be your ninny while you are at school." The squeaky voice of the elf said.

"Ninny? Oh, you mean nanny, don't you?" Hermione placed the sleeping Daniel inside the crib. Walking out of the nursery, Hermione approached the middle door and popped her head in. It was her room. There was a very large bed, an old hand carved work desk, and another beautiful golden crib.

"Well, that leaves the last room." As she approached the room furthest to the left, her hands began to sweat. _'I wonder who it'll be.'_ She knocked on the door firmly and waited for a reply. Nothing. She knocked once more. Still no answer. _'Maybe he's not in.' _Gathering up her courage once more, she took hold of the doorknob and slowly turned it, pushing the door open.

"Oh Merlin!" She gasped, nearly laughing, knowing her bulging eyes must have been a sight to see.

"Dumbledore, you fool. You said I would receive a private room!" It was the restroom, meaning not only did she receive a room, but everything she had seen had been for her and Daniel. She would not be sharing anything with the head boy. _'Thank Merlin.' _

Hermione left the bathroom and walked swiftly towards the nursery. "I'm sure he'll sleep until I get back. If you'd just watch him while I'm gone." She said quickly to the house elf in an apologetic tone. The elf bowed and shoved Hermione out of the room.

"Go. You're late."


	3. A Little Change

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters. All credit must be given to J.K. **

The Cradle Will Fall

Chapter 2

Hermione rushed down to the Great Hall as quickly as her feet allowed.

"Holy—er—blessed—um—rats—ah—ass!" Hermione laughed to herself.

"Holy blessed rats ass? Okay, now I'm _really_ late." She was supposed to be at dinner twenty minutes ago, making announcements with the Head Boy and Dumbledore. They had probably already moved on to dinner.

As Hermione reached the doors, she slowed her run to a fast walk. She wouldn't want everyone to know she was accidentally late. Perhaps they'd think she was doing an errand for someone.

When she opened the large, wooden doors, a blast of sound met Hermione's ears. The chatter of excited students filled the hall and made no sign of stopping. Excitement. Hermione hadn't experienced a feeling of excitement in about a year and a half now. Oh well. At least they wouldn't notice her creep over to her seat.

"How nice." Hermione said mockingly, rolling her eyes at the chattering students.

"Now, where is my seat?" She scanned the hall in search of Dumbledore, for that was whom she would be sitting with.

"Aha, found you." She smiled at how much more she talked to herself since Daniel was born. _'Real mature, huh?_' Hermione walked to the left of the head table, which was not normal to Dumbledore's seat at the center of the table.

As she made her way over, the hall began to fall silent. She was afraid of this. A wave of whispers and hisses erupted, slightly resembling a swarm of buzzing bees. All eyes escorted her to her table, causing Hermione's mouth to dry.

"Who is she?" She heard some younger students say.

"Why is _she_ here?" Older students complained to one another, putting emphasis on 'she'.

_'Why do they give a damn? I wouldn't have come if Dumbledore hadn't asked me.'_ Hermione approached the table, noticing a very handsome student with a gleaming Head Boy badge. He stood up and pulled the chair out for her.

"Granger, long time no see. Pleasure having you join us for our seventh year." He smiled.

"Malfoy. I enjoy being back. I think." She waved her hand at the students, who were slowly moving back to their conversations and dinners.

Hermione gave Malfoy an odd look. _'I trust Malfoy about as far as I can throw him. Something's up. Trying to impress the staff, no doubt. That sneaky git. That sneaky, handsome, steamy, sexy, fine...'_ Hermione began to daze off as she stared at Malfoy. His blond hair was a little longer and appeared to be sun kissed, but it still looked immaculate. It was the first time she had ever been this close to him, but she didn't mind. His light blue eyes appeared to be framed by darker, curly lashes, making his eyes very appealing. The way his school robes hung on him indicated a well toned body underneath.

"Granger? Granger?" Her head suddenly snapped up.

"Huh?" Hermione hadn't been paying attention to what he had been saying. Malfoy used his index and middle fingers to raise her chin up.

"Hey," Malfoy began jokingly, "my face is up here." Hermione laughed but quickly suppressed it.

Behind Malfoy's curly lashes and smile she saw a sudden glint of malice in his eyes. _'It's all an act.'  
_  
"We took over your part of the announcements. Dumbledore and I." Malfoy motioned to Dumbledore, who was currently having what seemed to be a very in-depth conversation with Professor Snape. Hermione caught the words 'lemon drops' and 'doorbell'.

"So, why were you late?" Hermione knew this was coming, yet she was still shocked when he said it. The tone of his voice seemed slightly colder, as if he was trying to catch her at something. Just then, Dumbledore cut in.

"Miss Granger, did you get that message to Hagrid all right?" Hermione lifted an eyebrow. When she saw the twinkle in Dumbledore's eyes she immediately understood.

"Yes, Professor. And Hagrid agreed to be there." Dumbledore nodded and continued his conversation with Snape.

"A message?" Malfoy was immediately intrigued.

"Private business, you understand." She didn't ask him, rather told him he understood.

"Of course, of course. Why wouldn't I? I'm an understanding kind of guy." The two exchanged awkward laughter. Now that they had gotten initial chitchat over with, they could finally eat in silence.

Draco's mind began to wander just as Hermione's had_. 'Granger…You've certainly grown, haven't you? Very voluptuous. Not like those fifth years I was seeing last year. It's as if your breasts have swelled in the year you were gone.' _Draco began to salivate. Hermione's soft brown hair was about waist length, much more straight than previous years.

"Malfoy. Malfoy."

"Huh? What?" Malfoy wiped the saliva from the corner of his mouth.

"Er...did you just say mmmmm?" Hermione closed her eyes and smiled as she said it, mocking the way Draco had looked seconds before.

"Sure. I was thinking of having a snack later on. No—wait! I lied. I don't know what you're talking about. I said no such thing." Draco looked angrily down at his plate of food.

"Hey, I never said there was anything wrong with it. I do it all the time. See." Hermione picked up her fork and slowly slid a piece of pie into her mouth. She closed her eyes and gave a moan of pleasure.

"Mmmmm...I just had an orgasm in my mouth." She grinned and put down the fork.

The two teenagers laughed guardedly at the joke and continued with their dinner.

* * *

Hermione trudged up the stairs slowly, tired from all the excitement. She had had to stay after dinner, making sure everyone left the Great Hall and followed their house prefects to their dorms.

Pansy Parkinson and her gang had continued to sit at the Slytherin table, chatting animatedly within her group. This had frustrated Hermione. When she had tried to move them along, Pansy had felt the need to be vehement.

"How dare you interrupt me, mudblood. You leave this school for a year and expect you can still run this damn place?" Pansy spat at her feet venomously.

"Besides, you're looking a little fatter around the edges. Disgusting slob. No one will want you." Hermione laughed at this. In the year she was gone, Pansy had grown to the size of a cow.

Hermione had a spaced out look on her face when she finally noticed Pansy still glaring at her.

"Sorry, did you say something?" Hermione gave her a half-lidded gaze. Pansy stamped her foot on the ground with a "Humph!' and stormed out of the hall, her companions close behind.

Hermione was now slowly making her way up to her dorm room. She was stopped by two male voices, though.

"Hermione!" She spotted Ron and Harry running up the stairs quickly. Ron was the first to reach her, scooping her up in his arms and squeezing her tightly to his chest as he kissed the top of her head. "We wanted to come see you during dinner, but we thought it would be best not to let Malfoy rile us up." Ron let her go and allowed Harry to hold her.

"Er—hi." Hermione said stiffly. She had an awkward feeling surround her that wouldn't remove itself when she smiled. Harry seemed to grip on to her a little tighter than Ron did. She suddenly felt guilty. "I missed you two so much." Harry released her as she looked up at the two of them.

"Well? Why were you gone?" Harry inquired anxiously. Ron scratched his bright red hair. Both Harry's and Ron's eyebrows disappeared into their hair. There had to be a good explanation for why she had left them without a word, without even one note.

"Well...it's very complicated. You wouldn't understand, really." Hermione tried to make the remark sincere, not hostile.

Ron looked at her sadly. "Hermione, we're your best friends. You can tell us."

"I know Ron. Not now, though." Her voice had become very quiet. She sounded tired. Harry didn't say anything.

"Well." Ron began to yawn, "I'm going up to bed, then. See you at breakfast, Mione." After embracing her once more, he began to climb the stairs quickly, hoping Mrs. Norris wouldn't catch him.

"Hermione." Harry's voice cracked a little as he moved closer to her.

When Hermione had left Hogwarts, they had been in a secret relationship. Once in a while they'd skip lunch and snog in the back of the library. A few times Harry had crawled into Hermione's bed and had slept with her. They had never _done _anything, though. They had been at a high point in their relationship when Hermione left. This had crushed Harry. It was like reading a spectacular book, only to find the ending missing. Well, Harry was going to make sure she didn't get away from him this time.

Harry snaked his arms around Hermione's waist and pulled her body against his. Hermione pulled his glasses from his face and threw them down, where they broke. Neither noticed. Hermione ran her hands through his hair as he lowered his head to hers. The second his lips touched hers, Hermione felt the pain and anger Harry had suffered when she had left. His kisses were hard, like he needed to make up all the kisses they had lost, all the pleasure he had been robbed of. Though his lips were pushed hard against hers, his tongue moved gently across the inside of her mouth. Their burning bodies were pressed against one another so closely, Hermione could feel Harry entirely. They might have ended up having sex in the middle of the stairway if someone hadn't interrupted.

"Sorry to interrupt your…_fun_. You know I love fooling around as much as you do. But if Filch catches you two, in the middle of the stairs no less, you'll have your Prefect and Head Girl badges suspended." Malfoy smirked from the bottom of the stairs. He looked a little embarrassed in catching them.

Neither Hermione nor Harry said a word, but rather nodded at Malfoy's warning. Hermione picked up Harry's broken glasses, fixed them then placed them back on his face. The two walked hand in hand up the stairs without saying a word.

Hermione arrived at her portrait and stopped.

"Well, this is it." Hermione began to kiss Harry goodbye. Harry put a hand to her lips, though.

"Aren't you going to invite me in?" Harry grabbed her hand and gently rubbed it with his thumb.

"I—I—No. It's real messy. I haven't had time to clean up." Hermione stuttered nervously. She gently set her hand on his chest and gave him a peck on the lips. Harry looked confused but shrugged.

"Now hurry back to the dorms before someone catches you." She gave Harry a light shove in the direction of the Gryffindor common room and sighed. Close call.

"Bonetmal." The door swung open, revealing the sparkling gold room. Harry glanced back as it opened, getting a glimpse of a very tidy room.


	4. Draco

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters. All credit must be given to J.K. **

The Cradle Will Fall

Chapter 3

Hermione awoke to the loud screams of Daniel. She bolted up in bed and searched the room frantically. Her heart pumped fast like her alarm clock had just woken her up, like it did in the past. 'Where's that screaming coming from?' For a second Hermione had forgotten she was a mother, had forgotten she wasn't still a little girl. The second came and went, though.

Hermione jumped off the oversized bed and ran over to Daniel's crib. Her heart nearly jumped out of her chest when she realized he wasn't there.

"Oh Merlin." She remembered leaving him in the nursery last night. He had been sound asleep when she had gotten back and she really wouldn't have enjoyed waking him. He was cranky when he was tired.

Hermione quickly ran into the nursery, finding Nanny, which is what Daniel called her, trying to calm the screaming child. He was standing up in his crib, his mouth wide open. His eyes were shut tight but tears still seemed to find their way out. He gripped the side of the crib as he cried, his face bright red.

Hermione pulled Daniel out of the crib and rocked him. Slowly, Daniel began to calm down, his sobs occurring in short intervals.

"Shh. Your mummy's right here." Daniel took a hold of her long hair. Hermione assumed it was comforting for him; he always did it when she held him. That was a big reason she hadn't cut it in so long.

"Danny? Are you hungry?" She asked him when he was finally silent. Hermione walked into her common room and set Daniel on the couch in front of the fire.

"You want something to eat?"

"Yesh." Daniel said. A jumble of words she could not understand then followed this. Hermione smiled and nodded at whatever he had just said.

"Okay. I'll go get you something." Hermione stood up, slipped on a school robe and headed towards the portrait.

"Mama!" Daniel began to scream again. He jumped off the couch and ran to Hermione, clinging tightly to her right leg. On both cheeks there were little burning red spots, reminding her of someone.

"Danny! You can't come." She gave him a stern look, only causing the spots on his cheeks to grow larger and his screaming to intensify. You would have thought he was hurt by the way he was crying.

Hermione groaned. "Fine. Go find your shoes and blanky." Hermione tapped her foot impatiently as she watched the little brown head disappear into the nursery. Seconds later, he reappeared with the nanny holding his things.

"Oh Daniel, you brat." She walked over to the nanny and took the things off her hands. Hermione looked worried for a second.

"You can leave until I need you. You don't always have to be waiting for us." Hermione smiled wholeheartedly. The elf quickly gave a bow and began to leave with excitement. She clearly had no enjoyment in her job.

Hermione slipped Daniel's shoes on and lifted him, resting his head on her shoulder. She draped his blue blanket over him and pushed the portrait open. It was only seven and her first class didn't start until ten. She had plenty of time.

Inside the kitchens, Daniel's face was no longer tear streaked. In fact, there was a continuous stream of laughter as he chased the elves around.

"Danny, no baby." Hermione pretended to feel concern for his actions. It made her laugh, really. He listened, though, and came to sit with her. She pulled him up on her lap.

"Excuse me," she pulled aside an aging house elf, "can you get me two bowls and a glass of milk?" The elf nodded and hurried off quickly.

* * *

Hermione looked down at Daniel. His face was covered in oatmeal and he was now snoring loudly on her lap.

"You definitely do not get that from me. I do _not_ snore." She looked down at the watch around her wrist. "Well, time to go, I guess." She hoisted Daniel over her shoulder and draped him with the blanket once more. She felt almost ashamed, hiding him like that. She wasn't sure how people would react, though.

As she neared her portrait, she spotted Harry walking at the end of the empty hall. Hoping he hadn't seen her, she ran quickly to the young girl and gave the password.

"That was close." Hermione leaned against the wall with her eyes closed, keeping her left hand on Daniel's head. She could hardly breathe. When she opened her eyes, she whipped her head back fast, hitting it against the stone wall. Feeling dizzy, she slowly slid to the floor and gave Daniel a squeeze.

"Granger?" Draco walked over to where she was now sitting. He pulled her head away from the wall and quickly examined it. He wasn't sure what he was looking for. Maybe a bump? This did not help, though, because she soon began to slip into unconsciousness.

"Oh shit! Is she dead?" Draco panicked and started yelling. "Help! Someone help her!" His yells were useless, but did cause something to move.

"What the hell?" Draco pushed himself away from her and jumped backwards a foot.

"What is that?" He whispered to himself. The blanket twitched once again. Cautiously, he crept over to the blanket and slowly pulled it off. When he had completely removed the blanket, he threw it down as if it were acid.

"A kid? Merlin, I've become such a girl since my father's been gone. Wait...what's a kid doing _here_?" He didn't have to wait for an explanation too long. He noticed Hermione moving her head, and, soon enough, she opened her eyes.

"Malfoy! What are _you_ doing here?" She was almost angry, but he could sense a bit of embarrassment.

Malfoy felt very stupid now. In fact, he didn't _remember_ why he had come_. 'How humiliating,'_ he thought.

"Uh..I.. do you need help?" He extended his hand hesitantly. She cautiously accepted and slowly pulled herself up. Draco watched her disappear into a room and come back without the kid.

"So," Draco smirked, "who are you babysitting for?" He wished he hadn't said this. How was he to know it would cause her to react like that? _'Then again, why do I care all of sudden? It's just Granger.'_

Hermione sank to the floor in tears, her sobs causing Malfoy to frown. _'Still…I hate it when girls cry. Reminds me of mum.'_

"He—He's mine. My son Daniel." Her tears streamed down her face. She sobbed out what she had just said, but Draco heard it clearly.

"_Your_ kid! Merlin! But—but—is that where you were last year?" Draco was dazed. The thought of _her_ having a child was unusual. He didn't know why he even cared, but he did. _'This can't be the same Granger. The little miss perfect that annoyed me would have never become pregnant.'_

"Hey," He tried softening his expression to remove the awkward air in the room.

"Lot's of girls have children. It's natural, it's what they do." It probably wasn't the most intelligent thing he had said, but it seemed to cheer Hermione up a little.

Giving him an amused smile, Hermione unknowingly brought her hand up to his face, caressing his cheek. She was almost spellbound by his eyes. She couldn't look away.

"Who are you, Draco Malfoy?" The question seemed to startle him, more so than the soft hand on his face.

"I—" He didn't really know what she meant. But it didn't matter, for he suddenly remembered how much he had wanted Hermione Granger the night before at dinner. Seeing her again with Potter made him want her even more, knowing that there was someone else who had interest for her.

Malfoy closed his eyes and set his forehead on hers. He began caressing her neck, following his fingers with his soft kisses. His fingers made their way back up to her mouth, where they lingered momentarily before his lips followed. Their lips barely touched, but it sent freezing chills down her spine. His touches were precise, perfect. With every touch she would grip his shoulder tighter and tighter.

"_Draco_." She pleaded. He wasn't sure what she was pleading for, but he took a wild guess. He laid her slowly on the couch, pulling her school robe off. He gently kissed her eyes. _'Oh, what I'd give to just rip her shirt off right now.'_ For a reason he couldn't explain, though, he didn't. He felt more restrained than that.

Kissing the bottom of her neck, he slowly began unbuttoning her shirt from the bottom up. Hermione moaned and thought about how Harry was the only one who had seen her before. _'Harry. What am I doing! This is Malfoy!'_

"Stop." Draco looked up puzzled, stopping halfway up her shirt.

"Are you sure?" Draco's eyes were almost her downfall. She quickly threw her arm over her eyes. This looked like a gesture of annoyance to Draco, but she was actually preventing herself from looking into his eyes.

Draco swallowed a large lump in his throat. He had never been able to just walk away from a half-exposed woman before. Painfully, he nodded and stood up. _'What is her problem? Wait. Maybe I have a problem. Maybe I've lost it.'  
_  
"Well, I'll be off to class." Draco backed up, turned around, and appeared to sulk out of the room. Removing her arm, Hermione was able to catch the sight of his cloak whipping its way through the portrait.

She couldn't describe the feeling she had just experienced minutes before. It was different. Not like with Harry. There was more there, but she wasn't sure what it was. But it had been Malfoy, which was truly odd. Why would Malfoy ever touch her?

What felt like hours later, Hermione heard a light knock at her portrait. _'Could he be back?'_ For some odd reason, Hermione almost felt excited. Excited for the man who had called her mudblood so often, who had been so rude to her, who had been hell for her friends.

Hermione stood up, frustrated at being so stupid. She pushed the portrait open and poked her head out.

"What do you want? Harry." Hermione's voice got caught in her throat and her expression was that of shock. Before she could control what was happening, he had pushed the door open and had stepped in.

"Nice to see you too!" Harry glanced down at her and grinned.

"Expecting me?" He put his hand on her exposed belly. Hermione looked down and turned scarlet. _'Thank Merlin I never had stretch marks.'_

"Actually, I was getting ready for class." Hermione smirked when Harry looked at her. She knew he knew she was lying. He fingered a button, finally deciding to unbutton the last three. He slipped the white shirt off her shoulders in a hurry.

"Let's skip class. We could sit here and fool around." Harry's lop sided smile made him so attractive. Hermione could feel the heat radiating off him. She had nearly said yes, wanting to spend more time with him, but the nursery door came into view, snapping her back into reality. Malfoy had just found out about Daniel. She wasn't sure if she could trust him not to say anything, but she definitely felt Harry didn't need to know. Not now, anyway.

"What's wrong?" He noticed that she looked uninterested. This was very disappointing to him.

"Well, it's not that I don't _want_ to spend time with you—"

"Well, what's wrong then?" He was more upset than she expected him to be.

"It's our first day back, Harry. I really don't want to miss class." Hermione put her shirt on and pulled on her school robe.

"Let's go, Harry." She took his hand and pulled him out the door with her. _'I'm starting to think coming back to Hogwarts was a bad idea.'  
_


	5. Visions of Change

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters. All credit must be given to J.K. **

The Cradle Will Fall

Chapter 4

Hermione was sitting at her window in her room. Daniel was playing with a trinket from his nursery, agape and wide-eyed. The object produced a beautiful, harmonious sound that excited him. Hermione did not notice this. She had her hand under her chin as she tapped her fingers back and forth.

It had been a hectic few weeks, but somehow she was able to get through it without too much strain. Draco never did tell anyone about Daniel, which shocked her. It almost lifted the weight off her shoulders, but she was always bracing herself in case he did.

Maybe, with his father gone away in Azkaban he felt freer to be civil. She hoped so. _'But Malfoy's always been a git in the past. Why would he change?'  
_  
Hermione was now sitting by the window staring longingly at the quidditch pitch. From her room she was able to see red and blue dots quickly zooming back and forth. Loud cheers escaped the stadium every few minutes. She was almost jealous. She didn't even like quidditch. It was the first game of the season, Gryffindor versus Ravenclaw, though, and she couldn't go. Why? Daniel.

"Come on, Danny." Hermione pulled Daniel onto her bed. At first he whined, but after a while, he was silent. It was getting late in the evening and she wanted him to sleep so he wouldn't be irritated later on. She held Daniel close to her, both of them finally falling asleep. Within no time Hermione drifted into an odd, surreal world.

* * *

Hermione stood in a long hall that seemed to stretch on forever. It didn't, though, because she could see a boy at the end. She couldn't make out what he was doing, though.

Hermione trekked down the hall, curious as to what the boy was doing. When she was about a meter from him she frowned, realizing who it was.

"Draco?" He looked younger than he was now, but older than when she had left. She guessed it was Christmas break of his sixth year, since it was freezing and he wasn't at Hogwarts.

She went to set her hand on his shoulder but, caught off guard, was shocked when it went right through.

"What the hell?" Hermione glanced at her hands, waving them in front of her face. Merlin, they were transparent! Draco's sudden movement caused her to jump. She soon lost interest in her hands. He was frowning and slightly biting on his lower lip in contemplation. If Hermione had to guess, she would say he looked unsure and nervous. _'But why?'_

"What are you doing?" Hermione asked him. He did not respond though. Smacking her forehead, she finally grasped the fact that he didn't know she was there. Curiosity always ruled over privacy with her, so she couldn't help but peak over his shoulder.

He was reading a letter, a letter that was apparently the source of Draco's apprehension. She quickly scanned over it.

_Draco, help me now and you'll never regret it. The Dark Lord has used his power to free us, his loyal followers. My life is currently full of perpetual running to escape these blasted Aurors. For four days I've been on the run. They'll never find me where I'm going though. I'll arrive at the manor in a short time, and you, me, and your mother will leave for our summer home in the south. I need you to open the floo system to the manor so I can get home in time. Give your mother my regards. Lucius Malfoy_

Draco was now walking quickly down the hall. In a beat Hermione caught up, leaning into him to hear what he was currently mumbling.

"Of—Of course, father. I'll make sure the fireplace is reconnected to the floo network immediately." He folded the paper with shaking hands and tucked it into his robe pocket. They approached a very large door, causing her to stop in her tracks. The dark, looming entrance gave off a wave of foreboding. She watched as Draco opened and promptly shut the door.

Hermione stood there for a while, not able to move. She had never felt so cold in her life. She didn't want to go into the room, but she felt compelled. Standing up to her own faceless fear, she crept over to the door, but was soon dumbfounded. How was she to get inside?

"Hmmm..." Hermione remembered her hand falling through Draco and decided to try it on the door. Sure enough, her hand fell through, followed by her entire body.

A soft chatter engulfed the room, surprising Hermione. There were several people in the room talking in excited voices about who knew what. By the looks of it, they worked for the ministry. They weren't Death Eaters, for a man in a sleeveless shirt (which baffled her) did not appear to have a Mark upon his arm.

"Moody?" Hermione blinked, but he did not vanish. There he was, standing in a corner of the room, cackling to himself about something.

"He'll be here soon. The bastard. Thinks he's so smart, doesn't 'ee?" His scratchy voice made Hermione cringe.

As he said this, the room suddenly fell silent. Hermione could see the anticipation practically sweating off the heads of everyone. She glanced at the fireplace where everyone else held their attention, noticing small shower of ash, steadily growing larger.

Hermione had barely caught sight of white-blond hair before the entire group rushed at him, simultaneously pointing their wands. Over all the cheering and jeering from the large group, Hermione could barely make out the shouts from the struggling Lucius.

"Damn you! Damn you all!" He kicked furiously at the men, who Hermione safely assumed were Aurors.

"YOU!" His piercing blue eyes struck Hermione like icicles. Her eyes grew wide and her heartbeat sped up considerably. Calming down, she turned and caught sight of Draco standing behind her. His face mimicked what hers may have looked like seconds before. Pale and shaken.

"You traitor! You scoundrel! You'll regret this." His shouts tapered off as he was taken further and further away. She turned back to Draco to find him standing stock still.

He seemed to be looking her way, similar to how Lucius had. She turned to look behind her to see who he was glaring at. There was no one in the room but her. She felt her knees collapsing underneath her, but before she hit the ground, he caught her.

Draco pulled her up, holding her against him, for she could no longer stand on her own. She looked up at him as he pushed her hair away from her eyes. He leaned in and closed his eyes, his face finding its way to her ear, where he suspiciously whispered to her.

"Wake up, Hermione. Wake up." Hermione knitted her eyebrows. They grew closer when he slowly began to shake her.

Hermione's mouth opened wide without control and a large gasp escaped, sounding as if she had been a human under water her entire life and could finally come up for air. Draco's face disappeared into a gleaming white light, so bright she could hardly see.

* * *

Hermione squinted at the light and sat up. The light took the shape of Draco, who now looked older.

"Draco?" He set down his lit wand, exposing how dark it was outside. Hermione's voice revealed how exhausted she was. She turned to Daniel to find him still asleep.

"Sorry I woke you," his large grin lessened a bit, "Maybe I should have waited for you to wake up. What' wrong with me these days?" _'Good question. I've no idea._' He began to leave but was stopped when Hermione grabbed his wrist. She quickly dropped it, though.

"Let me freshen up real quick." She climbed out of bed and had to face the harsh cold stone floors of Hogwarts.

Draco sat on Hermione's bed and looked down. Daniel's small body was hidden under the sheets but he could still see his light brown hair. The thought of having to grow up so soon was disheartening, but everyone at Hogwarts did. It was a disease, growing up was.

Hermione walked back into the room and Draco stood up. Her hair had been combed back into a high ponytail, still reaching the middle of her back.

"Okay. What's up?" Hermione motioned to the sofa pushed against the foot of her bed. He took a seat and she plopped down next to him.

"Let's talk." Hermione lifted an eyebrow and nodded slowly.

"I'm surprised. Why have you been acting so differently around me lately? A _mudblood_ of all people."

"Actually, I'm trying to recruit as many people to follow the Dark Lord as possible. You'd make a perfect spy." Hermione laughed loudly, but was quick to cover her mouth, remembering Daniel was asleep.

"Honestly. You're probably one of the sexiest women at Hogwarts right now. I believe it's in both our best interests to mate." Draco nearly choked at what had just spilled out of his mouth, but smirked it off when he noticed that Hermione's face had turned bright red.

"A little shallow, aren't you?" She tried shaking off what he had said from her face.

"Anyway," She changed the subject, "How did you ever get the Head Boy position? You were never extremely smart. Not as smart as many of the Ravenclaws." She looked him straight in the eye to see if he was offended. He appeared unfazed.

"I think you'd be surprised. Just because I slacked off didn't mean I was stupid. I cleaned up my act when you were gone. It was easier being at the top of the school with you out of the picture." Hermione wasn't sure if she was supposed to be offended. She shrugged.

After an uncomfortable silence Hermione finally sighed and spoke up, "Well, that's it then? You just wanted to talk?" Draco blinked.

"Er—actually, not at all. The talking was just a spur-of-the-moment thing." He began to pull out his wand, causing Hermione to stiffen.

"Relax. The reason I came here," Draco cleared his throat and continued, "was to show you this spell."

"A spell? You want to show me a spell?" Hermione was almost in a fit of hysterics.

"Yeah," Draco's voice had a hint of sarcasm in it, but it was still sincere, "Dumbledore said you might like it. Not sure why he thought this, but after trying it _I_ quite enjoyed it. I find it fascinating, really. I tried it in my living quarters." Draco was grinning now, his blue eyes twinkling with excitement behind his lashes. Whatever it was, it must have been good.

Draco mumbled something she couldn't hear and pointed at a bare wall. His wand emitted tiny sparks before casting a jet of rainbow light at the wall. Hermione's mouth slid into a grin as the color took form of pictures.

"Amazing! Television." Hermione giggled and threw her arms around Draco, pecking him on the cheek. _'Score one for me. I'll have her yet.'_

"This is wonderful. I can't believe it." But sure enough, her favorite sit-com was now playing on her wall, no television set involved. She was sure Hogwarts couldn't do things like that. But it was a spell: of course it would work.

"Look here. You can change the pictures by squeezing your hand around your wand. I've gotten quite addicted to it, actually. It's like crack." Draco turned slightly red at this.

"Draco, you know this how?" Hermione smirked at the pink spots on Draco's cheeks.

"Er—had a few junkies in the family." He looked up at her and noticed she was making her way to her bed now.

"Come sit with me, Draco. It'll be just like at my home." She smiled at the memories of watching television with her parents. _'Oh. It won't hurt. Besides, he's been really nice tonight.' _

Draco walked over to Hermione's side of the bed where she was now grinning at him. _'Gods she's beautiful.' _He immediately understood her tacit words and slipped off his school robe, revealing black trousers and his gray school vest. He slipped off his shoes and crawled into bed, slipping under the covers without waking Daniel. For some reason, sex was the last thing on his mind, which was odd, because that was the only thing on his mind when he intended to show Hermione the spell.Hermione wasn't sure how long they had lain there, watching program after program. It had gotten darker than before, though, and neither seemed to care. Draco held her closer to him as the night grew on. Daniel had awoken earlier that evening, but spotting the moving pictures like at home, quickly settled himself on Draco's other side, watching the program until he was fast asleep. Hermione found the sight sweet and Draco didn't mind either.

They fell asleep, all three of them, in the bed that night. Draco wasn't sure what was happening, but he somehow felt affection for Hermione. Only a few weeks ago he had remained collected and guarded around the perfect Head Girl. Perhaps discovering her imperfections had let his guard down. As for Hermione, she saw Draco as the only person who understood. He knew about Daniel. Not even Hermione's boyfriend, the great Harry Potter, knew about Daniel. He hadn't said anything about Daniel to anyone. She could trust him.


	6. Conflicting Ambition

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters. All credit must be given to J.K. **

The Cradle Will Fall

Chapter 5

Hermione woke to the sound of laughter. Opening her eyes, she spotted Daniel sitting at the foot of the bed watching a children's program. She looked up and spotted Draco, who was still sleeping. His right arm was curled around her neck and his left was snaked around her waist. _'What the heck is going on?'_ In a dizzying flash she recalled the events of the previous night. She knew the fact that she was enveloped in Draco's arms was not normal, but when she took a deep breath, the faint scent of expensive cologne erased all rationale from her mind.

Hermione glanced at Draco's watch. Twenty minutes until class. She took her hand and ran it through Draco's hair, rousing him from sleep. Slowly, his curly lashes parted, revealing two light blue eyes. Draco grinned and stretched his legs.

"Draco, class starts in twenty minutes." Hermione tried to explain, but was cut off when his lips found hers. Hermione was momentarily shocked, but without her rationale functioning, her ability to differentiate between right and clearly not right was lost. He trailed soft kisses all over her face, unleashing a stream of silent giggles from Hermione. When he finally stopped, the two disappointedly pushed themselves out of bed. Hermione left the room on her way to her bathroom.

Draco stood up and glanced at his clothes. They were bunched and wrinkled from sleeping in them and were definitely not good enough to wear a second day.

Pulling his wand out of his pocket, he was quick to change his clothes. With a flick of the wrist, his trousers were finely pressed and his school uniform melted into a newer, cleaner one. He didn't bother touching his rumpled hair, though, because it would only behave with the right hair treatments.

Hermione reentered the room, hair shining and teeth gleaming. She walked over to Daniel and picked him up so she could lay him on the floor.

"What are you doing?" Draco curiously walked over to where they were but soon regretted it.

"That's disgusting." Draco's face contorted with repugnance. He took a few steps back when both Hermione and Daniel began to chuckle. Hermione was in the middle of changing Daniel's diaper.

"Oh, come on, now. Everyone uses the bathroom. He can't help it." She tickled Daniel's feet then rolled up the dirty diaper.

"Isn't there a spell that would dispose of...that stuff?" Draco eyed the diaper and hesitantly took a step forward, as if it would blow any second.

"Maybe," Hermione lifted Daniel's legs and slipped a new diaper under, "but I believe this encourages more bonding. See, we spend more time together this way." She looked down at Daniel's smiling face and winked. She pulled his pants up and patted his bottom, indicating he could go back to what he had been doing before.

"Whatever casts your spell, I guess." Draco shrugged and offered a hand to her. When she was off the ground, Draco pulled her closer to him. The two shared a brief kiss before Hermione pulled away. This was very disappointing to Draco. But the image of Harry was beginning to slip into Hermione's conscious again. How could she justify her actions with Draco_? 'Well, he's really hot. No one can say no to really hot...except for me. Why can't I control myself then?'_ She shrugged.

"I need to get Danny fed and asleep before class." Hinting to him that she was pressed for time. He let her hand go and she was able to walk over to Daniel.

"Come on Danny." She lifted him and walked out of the room and into the nursery_. 'Danny's getting heavier every day.'_ She readjusted the way she held him. Draco decided to wait in the common room. When she set Daniel in his crib, she was quick to call the nanny.

"You call, miss?" The elf squeaked.

"Ah—yeah. I'll be back in a few minutes with Danny's breakfast. If you could just watch him." The elf bowed. When Hermione started towards the door, though, Daniel began crying out.

"Mum!" For the first time, he was able to say this clearly with articulation. He reached out to her in his crib and started to cry, similar to the way he had weeks earlier.

"Oh...no..." She lifted Daniel up and rocked him, but he would not calm down.

"What's wrong?" Draco walked in, concerned about all the screaming Daniel was doing. "Is he hurt?"

"No. He doesn't want me to leave him." Hermione was worried she would have to miss her first class of the morning, Potions, if she couldn't get him to stop.

Draco just smirked.

"I guess bonding isn't necessarily a good thing, eh?" Draco was close to laughing, but Hermione gave him a threatening look.

"Why not take him with us?" Draco's voice was firm and was on a serious note for once.

"What?" Hermione gave him a disbelieving look, not able to process why he had even suggested it. "No. I'd rather go to the kitchens."

"That will take longer. The Great Hall is closer." Draco lifted an eyebrow.

"Why take him with us? Why?"

"Why not? Eventually, everyone _will_ find out," Hermione frowned and shook her head at this, "whether you like it or not. You can't keep something so huge as a child secret. Impossible." By now, Daniel was silent and watching Draco as he spoke. Daniel fidgeted in her arms and she was soon forced to put him down. The second his feet touched the ground he had attached himself to Draco's leg.

Hermione was close to tears, but somehow held them in. She didn't want people to know, but he was right.

* * *

Hermione stood frozen in front of the Great Hall doors, her knees ready to buckle from all the shaking. She held Daniel with her left arm and with her right hand squeezed Draco's left. Draco gave her a reassuring smile before leaning down to kiss her.

"You better get to breakfast. Only fifteen minutes until class." He grinned and opened the doors. The chatter was so loud Daniel flinched. He hadn't been exposed to so many people before. Until now.

Hermione watched Draco walk off to the Slytherin table. She longed to just sit with him. 'Then again, this was his idea.' Hermione began to regret ever listening to him. Finally, she stepped into the loud room towards the Gryffindor. When she reached the table, she decided to sit between Harry and Ron, neither of who looked up.

Harry leaned to his right, intending on kissing Hermione's cheek, but was surprised when his lips met a tiny ear. His eyes flew open and he was quick to curse, catching the attention of most everyone around them.

"Who the hell is that?" Harry looked at Daniel as if he weren't human. Ron's face drained of all color, leaving a clash of red and white that did not suit him well.

She ignored Harry at first, not wanting to answer his question. But everyone was looking at her, so she could not avoid him for long. Ron, who was apparently much wiser than he was two years ago, knew immediately what the answer was to be and began to rub his temples, feeling the beginnings of a headache. It was going to be a long day.

"Harry, will you calm down?" Ron wanted to make sure he wasn't too full of energy when she answered him. Ron, oddly enough, had a feeling this was why she had left, but didn't have enough evidence to support his theory. When he had seen her at the beginning of the year, his theory was soon forgotten due to the joy of her being back. When he had hugged her though, he knew _certain_ parts of her didn't feel as they used to. ;)

When Hermione had finished feeding Daniel, who was now fast asleep in her lap, she stood up and followed Harry out of the hall. Though the hall was loud, Daniel did not wake.

The two stood by the stairs in silence. Hermione wasn't going to speak if Harry didn't speak first. At last, Harry managed to say something.

"We've never had sex together." He almost looked hurt when he had said this. It made Hermione feel extremely heartbroken. _'I guess he was able to figure it out on his own._' She suddenly felt torn with emotions. It was exciting, being around Draco. Then again, she felt as though she was leaving Harry, her boyfriend, in the dust. As if she had found someone new and was no longer interested in him. Malfoy, their enemy. It hurt.

"I know, Harry." Hermione lowered her head and felt her tears burn her eyes._ 'Why have I become such a baby?_' Seeing the tears, Harry comfortingly rubbed her back. She didn't want to cry: Daniel had just fallen asleep.

"I never wanted to tell anyone. I was raped our fifth year. It was horrible," She blinked her tears dry and heaved a sigh of determination, "but I'm fine now. Don't worry." She hated explaining. It made her feel stupid and careless for allowing it to happen. She allowed him to pull her closer to him as he rubbed her back. She knew he was worried and upset, but he masked it well.

"I need to get Daniel into his nursery before class." He simply nodded as he watched her disappear up the stairs. When she had disappeared from view, he couldn't help but contemplate everything that had just happened. He was brought out of his reverie, though, when a violent shove sent him flying to the ground.

"Where the hell is she?" He looked up into the face of Draco Malfoy. Harry's face immediately scrunched into anger as he spat at his feet.

"Why do you care? She's just a filthy mudblood to you, isn't she?" Draco's face began to turn red but he said nothing. He kept his knuckles clenched, though.

"You think I haven't noticed how you look at her? I've seen you ogling. She's _my_ fucking girlfriend, so stay away." Harry's eyes were dancing with a fiery hatred.

"SHUT UP, POTTER!" Draco's jaw was clenching and unclenching like crazy. "Don't tell me how I can and can't look at people. And you can stop worrying; I have not and will not touch your precious girlfriend." A glint of amusement seemed to flash in his eyes, but when Harry looked again it was gone.

_'Oh, what the hell!_' Harry pushed himself off the ground and rushed towards Draco, shoving him as hard as he could. The two scuffled momentarily, but the sound of the Great Hall doors opening pried them apart.

"I'm watching you, stupid git." And with that, Harry pulled back his fist and punched Draco in the face.


	7. More Than Potter

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters. All credit must be given to J.K. **

The Cradle Will Fall

Chapter 6

"Hi. I got you these." Draco smiled as he handed Hermione a bouquet of flowers. She beamed joyfully as she took them and attempted to find a place to put them. "Thank you." She said sweetly.

Hermione walked over to the fireplace in her common room and stared down at the fire. It had been three days since she had taken Daniel to the Great Hall. In those three days, Draco seemed to spend every winking moment with her. Even when she knew he had better things to do, like finishing homework, he stayed with her. Yesterday, Harry had invited Hermione to watch him practice quidditch at five. Poor Harry, though, for Hermione completely forgot. Draco was with her and she had seemed to have just lost track of time. Odd, though. Hermione hardly lost track of time.

Draco's arms found their way around Hermione's waist. The sudden contact pulled her from her reflections. He laid his cheek on the top of her head and pulled her closer to him.

"Have I ever told you how much I adore you?" His words made Hermione laugh to herself. "Only every minute you're with me. I'm starting to get the feeling you use it as filler when there's too much silence." He laughed at this. _'If Potter could see us, he'd self combust.' _

"Well, aren't you going to say something sweet and affectionate to _me_?" Draco asked half sarcastically. He released her and turned completely towards her so he could look at her face. Her eyes seemed to sparkle with amusement.

"Well," Draco placed his hand at the back of her head as she began to speak, "have I ever told you I like you more than—" He pressed his lips onto hers, stifling her words. Hermione's breathing sped up as his hands caressed her body, moans escaping her lips periodically. His hands eventually found their way to the sides of her face, where they stayed. He pulled away from her mouth and leaned into her ear.

"More than Potter?" He had said this quietly, but Hermione heard very clearly.

"Prat." She pulled back and slapped his arm. She didn't appear too fazed by his remark, though. _Did_ she like Draco more than Harry? She must have, for she risked everything to secretly be with Draco. If she had liked Harry more, she would have stopped it. She would have never invited Draco into her bed that night. She said nothing, though.

"Do you want to do something before Daniel wakes up?" Hermione questioned him as she took a seat on one of the sofas in the room.

"I'd like to do a lot of things before he wakes up, but I don't think we're that far along in the relationship." Hermione smiled but gave him a suspicious look. _'So now this is a relationship? Am I allowed to have two relationships, because I fear that's what's happened.' _

Draco came and stretched out on the couch, setting his head in Hermione's lap. "I still want to talk about Potter." Hermione rolled her eyes.

"What's there to talk about?" Draco looked up at her skeptically.

"Are you joking? Every time I bring him up, you avoid it like the plague." She began to shake her head in denial. "Yes you do." He took hold of her hand and gently set it on his chest, over his heart.

"I want to be with you."

"You _are_ with me!" Draco shook his head.

"No. I want Potter out of the picture." Hermione tried to argue, but he stopped her.

"Please. Let me talk for a minute." She nodded and he continued. "It makes me sick, seeing you two in the halls and in class. He's always all over you." His eyes subconsciously narrowed at the thought of them.

"He's my boyfriend, Draco." Her words sounded ridiculous to her own ears. _'I never thought I'd see the day that I, Hermione Granger, would be cheating on someone.'_

"So? If you really liked me you'd break up with him." He looked up at her expectedly. She shook her head.

"No. I left him. I left him without a word for a year. The least I could do is be with him."

"So you're with him out of pity? That's stupid." Draco gripped her hand a little tighter now. Hermione looked straight ahead at the fireplace.

"Who would you rather be with?" Draco's voice now sounded tense. There was a long pause before Hermione could find the strength to answer.

"I—I don't know." Draco dropped Hermione's hand suddenly, surprising her. He pushed himself up and off the couch quickly, his face now red.

"Well, when you figure it out, please inform me." Draco's voice was bitter. Who could blame him? He had hardly ever spent so much time with any girl as he did with Hermione. And now she was saying she wasn't sure if she liked him more than someone else. Draco was angry, sour, humiliated, but most of all, he was jealous.

Hermione watched, with her mouth agape, as Draco stormed from the common room. _'Ha! How dare he talk to me like that! I don't need him. We're too random anyway. People wouldn't get it.'_ Despite her silent argument, Hermione couldn't explain why she suddenly felt depressed.

With the crying of a child in the next room, Hermione forced herself off the sofa and back into mother mode.


	8. Blue

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters. All credit must be given to J.K. **

The Cradle Will Fall

Chapter 7

It was a beautiful day, approximately a week after Hermione had first brought Daniel to the Great Hall. She was glad she did it. She had forgotten why she had ever kept it a secret. People enjoyed playing with Daniel and vise versa. Once in a while there would be a person cracking jokes and calling her names, but that was no different than before she had Daniel.

Harry seemed okay with Daniel, almost enjoyed him even. She couldn't say much about their relationship, though. The more time Hermione spent with Draco, the more distant she grew from Harry. She couldn't help what she was doing, and was sometimes unhappy about.

He didn't blame Hermione for anything, though. In Harry's opinion, this was all Malfoy's fault. He made sure everyone knew he felt it was Malfoy's fault, too. One day, when the two were passing in the hall, Malfoy had made a snide comment to Harry about his scar. Harry, not showing any restraint, immediately lunged at him, throwing his fist into his face as hard as he could, as often as he could. Malfoy's face was so bloody you could hardly tell it was him, besides the fact that his hair stood out like silver on black. The screams of students brought a teacher to Malfoy's aide. Fifty points from Gryffindor: it was worth it. Or so Harry thought. The incident only brought Draco and Hermione closer. He lay in Hermione's common room in pain as she fussed and worried over him.

Draco was better. Unfortunately, his wounds did not heal cleanly, but instead left him with a scar from the outer edge of his eye to the edge of his hair. He was very upset about this, but Hermione assured him that it didn't mar his appearance.

The week of excitement had come and gone, though, and it was now the morning of the Slytherin--Gryffindor match. Hermione was currently walking towards the pitch, Daniel walking behind her as he watched hundreds of students bustling their way out of the school.

Not long after Hermione and Daniel had taken their seats, the players below stepped out onto the field. Hermione held Daniel tightly, afraid he would wander off near the ledge and hurt himself. He didn't care, though, for he was much too fascinated with what he was watching. It was his first quidditch game and he was more excited about it than Hermione was.

"Look Danny." Hermione whispered to her son and pointed at the people flying through the air. Daniel giggled with excitement and pointed at a person in green.

"Maco." Several girls around her cooed and sighed at what he had said. Hermione simply smiled.

"You're right. That's Draco. But look, there's Harry too." She squinted up through the bright morning light and spotted him, making laps around the stadium, ready for the game to start.

Hermione looked down and spotted someone in the crowd, someone who should have been seated across the stadium where all the other Ravenclaws were. She knew why she was here, though. She had been getting closer and closer to the Gryffindors ever since the beginning of the year. She wanted Harry, she was sure of it.

Amanda Brocklehurst was seated between Lavender and Parvati in the very front row, all three giggling like lunatics. She knew they were watching Harry, for their eyes moved around the field as he did, and once in awhile, Amanda would turn around and look at Hermione to see if they had been caught. Hermione would always look up though, pretending she hadn't seen them gawking.

It's not that Hermione hated her. That wasn't it at all. For some reason, though, she had a slight feeling of detest in the pit of her stomach every time she saw her. After all, her and Harry were still dating. They still had a relationship. Because of this, she felt as though the girl was moving in on her territory.

"That Mandy girl. Humph." Daniel looked at his mother in confusion, but soon turned back to the game. Hermione beamed and ran her hand through his soft brown hair, revealing his blue eyes. Hermione snorted to herself when she heard several girls next to her sigh._ 'My child's a heart breaker already.' _She pecked him on the cheek.

"Excuse me," Hermione was surprised to hear a deep male voice behind her and was quick to turn around, "can I sit here?" He pointed to the empty spot next to her. Hermione slowly nodded, but was puzzled as to why he would want to. 'What is he doing here?'

Blaise Zabini sat down next to her and looked straight ahead, squinting at the recently started game. His black hair glinted in the light, catching the eye of everyone sitting around them. He concentrated on the goals very hard, finally turning when Slytherin made a goal_. 'That was strange.'  
_  
"I want to talk to you about something." His piercing eyes cut into her soul, making her feel naked. He stared at her with his deep blue eyes, waiting for a response. 'His eyes...they're Neptune...' Hermione's eyes grew wide. _'No! No, I'm being silly. They're much lighter than Daniel's eyes.' _Thisdid not reassure her though.

"Are you okay?" He looked concerned for her. He set his hand on her shoulder, but she jerked back in fear, unintentionally scaring Daniel.

"Sorry, Danny." Daniel's attention was now focused on the man sitting next to him. She could see it now, though. Both of them so close together like that: she could see it. Their eyes...they were exactly alike. She felt her teeth begin to chatter and her knees begin to shake. No one took notice, though, for it was the beginning of fall.

"There are too many people here," Blaise turned towards all the Gryffindors around them, especially the girls to their right, leaning in to listen, "but I still want to speak with you later. I think you'll want to know this." He leaned into her so no one would be able to hear. "It's about him." He nodded to Daniel, who had gone back to the game, fixated on the blurry figures.

Blaise stood up, striding out of the Gryffindor stands with grace, resembling Draco's graceful walk.

By now Hermione had a lump the size of an orange in her throat and it felt like she was choking. All she wanted to do was cry. She wanted to cry until she was no longer upset. _'It was him. It was him this entire time.' _She felt her eyes watering, but quickly closed them. The nosey girls to the right were still looking over at her.

"Mama?" Daniel tried to turn around, but Hermione had set her head on his shoulder. She simply squeezed him tightly, not wanting to let go.

* * *

When the game ended, Hermione slowly made her way to the pitch with Daniel, who was trying to take the stairs by himself, his mother holding his hand firmly, though. When they had spotted Draco on the pitch, Daniel immediately let go of her hand and had run over to him. Some girls to her right, who she was now sure was following her, sighed when Draco picked Daniel up. Hermione signaled to Draco and his beaming face grew suddenly upset.

Hermione made her way over to the Gryffindor team, where Harry was quick to envelope her in his arms. He leaned down and pecked her on the lips.

"Good game." Hermione grinned up at him but he merely shrugged. "You can't win them all?" Harry said.

"Was that a question?" Hermione laughed and untangled herself from his arms.

"I need to change out of my uniform. I'll meet up with you later, okay?" Hermione nodded and watched him walk away and into the locker rooms.

"That stupid idiot." Hermione turned around and found Draco behind her, Daniel in his arms. He was still upset. "He was _smirking_ at me as he hugged you, you know."

"Oh come on." Draco set Daniel down and they all started for the school, Draco still in full uniform.

"Nice going out there, by the way." Hermione interrupted the silence with her complement. Draco cracked a smile, his sour mood slowly dissipating.

"Yeah." It was all he said. It was all he needed to say, I guess, for his excitement was evident by his expression. Draco grabbed the snitch before Harry. That was the first time since...ever. The two laughed, Draco in excited disbelief, Hermione in amusement of Draco.

Her good mood was soon squashed when they began to head up the stairs to the castle. She glanced behind her and spotted Blaise trekking slowly behind. He gave no notice to her or Draco, but continued walking up the stairs.

"Are you feeling well?" Draco had taken note of Hermione's unusually pale face. She nodded silently and continued to walk up the stairs.

"Draco?" Hermione looked over at him when they had reached the Entrance Hall. "Can you take Danny up to my room while I run a quick errand?"

"Sure. That is, if you promise you're not going to see Potter." He looked her in the eye to make sure she wasn't lying.

"Promise." With this, he heaved Daniel up and onto his shoulders and was soon up the stairs and out of sight. _'I do remember one thing from that night. The guy had a Dark Mark on his arm.'_ Hermione waited in the hall a few seconds when Blaise finally pushed open the doors.

"I'm glad Draco isn't with you." He walked over to her in no hurry. Hermione, however, had an eerie feeling in her stomach. When he was close to touching her, she put her hand up, stopping him from coming any closer. She grabbed his wrist tightly, causing him to knit his eyebrows. "What are you—" Before he realized what she was doing, she had quickly turned his arm over and pushed his sleeve up.

"Wait! Come back!" Hermione had thrown his arm down in fright and had staggered backwards with a scream. She was stumbling up the stairs as quickly as her legs could carry, which wasn't far, considering her entire body was shaking. _'It was there. As clear as day.'  
_


	9. Strawberry Twist

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters. All credit must be given to J.K. **

The Cradle Will Fall

Chapter 8

"Why have you been avoiding me?" Hermione turned around to see whom had spoken to her. Her heart leapt in fear when she realized who it was. Blaise was sitting on an old desk in the middle of the Potions classroom. The bell had rung minutes earlier, but Hermione was late getting out.

"What do you mean? I haven't been avoiding you at all." She pretended to look around in disinterest but she was actually hoping to spot Snape for once. Unfortunately, he was not to be found anywhere in the classroom. This brought her comfort level down to nil.

"You don't have to lie. You've been trying to dodge your way out of my sight since we talked yesterday." He slid off the desk and walked over to her, his blue eyes glowing spectacularly in the dark dungeon. It was a harsh reminder of yesterday's discovery. Blaise was very close now, touching her in fact. He had a good hold of her wrist. Now she couldn't get away.

"Please let go of me." Hermione's voice wavered, but she tried her best to keep eye contact with him, not wanting to reveal she was afraid.

"Listen, please. I wasn't sure why you ran off yesterday, but I hadn't spoken to you yet." He didn't have a menacing look about him. In fact, he looked quite charming. But he had not let go of her arm yet, causing Hermione to lose her control. Suddenly, she felt herself collapsing. He caught her though, just like she knew he would. That was exactly why she hoped she would be stronger.

"Are you okay?" He looked a little shaken and was unsure of what to do.

"Yeah. I'm fine." He escorted her over to a chair and allowed her to seat herself.

"Well, the reason I decided to speak to you was because," He looked down, puzzled at how he should tell her, "well, when I realized you had a son, I knew I should have said something from the start." Hermione felt it coming, a rush of cold confirmation that came in through her fingertips and went out through her cheeks. She almost felt remorseful towards him, for he was very uncomfortable about the situation.

"I should have said something. I didn't know you were pregnant, though. I didn't know..."

* * *

Harry was halfway to the Great Hall for lunch when he finally turned around. He wasn't sure why he did, but he had a feeling something was wrong.

"Brilliant." He said sarcastically, angry that he had been so absorbed in his own thoughts that he hadn't realized that Hermione was no longer by his side. For some reason he believed she was trailing behind him. But of course, she was not. He was about to turn around to find her when a female voice called out to him.

"Harry!" He looked over his shoulder and noticed she was alone. He wasn't sure he knew who she was, but he had definitely seen her before. She had short brown hair that ended in an outward curl that bounced when she walked. She wasn't too tall. In fact, she was rather petite, like Hermione. There was something that stood out on her, though. She had braces on the top and bottom of her teeth, which really caught one's attention. She was a muggle-born.

"Hi." He said, walking over and beaming at the girl. He offered her his hand, which she seemed to shake with much joy.

"My name's Mandy. Mandy Brocklehurst. I can't believe I haven't had the opportunity to meet you before this." She was gleaming with excitement, which Harry found attractive. _'She's very confident.' _He noticed she stood straight and did not slouch.

"Ravenclaw, right?" Harry remembered her around the halls and in a few lessons a couple of times. He was confirmed when she pointed to her house crest on her robes.

"Right. Well, I was wondering if you wanted to join me for lunch. I was going out to the tree by the lake. You know the one." Harry knew it very well, actually.

"Well," Harry glanced back at the stairs to the dungeon and hesitated, hoping Hermione had been heading to the library and nowhere near Malfoy, "I suppose I could." Mandy linked arms with him and they walked off in the direction of the Entrance Hall, both very excited about the afternoon.

* * *

Hermione silently wished Harry would run through the door and rescue her from him. He wasn't attacking her, not at all. But for some reason, Hermione felt threatened by him. She was very curious about what he was trying to tell her, though.

"I didn't know you were pregnant. If I had, I would have told you." Hermione braced herself for what he was attempting to say, knitting her eyebrows gripping the side of the chair tightly.

"I was there that night," He looked as if he was going to decide against telling her, but decided to go through with it, "I was in a dark corner. I had been on my way back to the Slytherin common room with more alcohol when I had turned the corner. There you were," he licked his lips, "and Draco Malfoy was on you."

"What?" Hermione's eyes widened and she nearly fell back in her chair.

"You liar! Why are you saying this?" She felt her breathing quicken and become shallower_. 'I don't believe this crap.'_ She tried to tell herself, but her body told her otherwise.

"Why would I lie? So I could win your affection? I don't think so. I'm happily engaged, thank you very much." He held up his left hand to show her the ring. There was no need for that, though, for everyone knew that he and some Ravenclaw girl were to be married after this year.

Hermione wasn't sure why he would lie to her. There had to be some kind of ulterior motive. She was sure of it.

"Right Blaise. Draco raped me." Hermione gave a mocking nod to him and stood. _'If I don't believe him, why do I suddenly feel less nervous around him?'_ She felt angry about the way she was acting. Blaise is lying bastard who probably wanted something from her.

"And you just let it happen?" She tried to catch him in a lie, prove he was lying.

"Draco was drunk. He had been drinking that whole night. I had heard of all the spells his father had been teaching him. I was afraid to get in his way, especially if he wasn't thinking straight. He could have blasted something important off me." His voice was unwavering and confident.

Hermione eyes narrowed.

"I'm not lying. If you don't want to believe me, suit yourself." As Hermione made her way to the door, she looked up into his blue eyes, finally coming to a conclusion: he was trying to find some alibi for himself. _'Well mister, I've got news for you: it isn't going to work.'  
_


	10. Smashed

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters. All credit must be given to J.K. **

The Cradle Will Fall

Chapter 9

"Hermione." Draco raised his hand over the rowdy crowd in the hall, trying to catch her attention. She looked up and spotted a pale hand beckoning to her. She knew who it was immediately and pushed her way through the crowd.

"Hey. I've been looking for you." He looked relaxed.

"Where's Danny?" Hermione remembered Draco volunteering to watch him during her Ancient Runes class. She was supposed to be meeting with McGonagall, but for some reason she couldn't find her.

"Professor McGonagall wanted to watch him." Draco thought it was peculiar that she had knocked on Hermione's common room door so she could take Daniel_. 'Why did she knock? She knows the password.'_ Draco shrugged, figuring she was trying to be polite.

"That's nice of her, but did she forget that I needed to meet with her?" Hermione's shoulders seemed to loosen up when he had told her. She was glad she didn't have to worry about Daniel. But still, she wondered why McGonagall would watch him if she had things to do.

"Let's get out of here." Draco led her out the front doors and down the castle stairs. Hermione was puzzled by this, but allowed him to lead her all the way around to the castle towards the back, where the grounds ended in a very high cliff. Draco walked over to the edge of the cliff, making her uneasy.

"Draco, I don't think you should be doing that." He didn't respond. Instead, he kept his head low, as if he was searching for something. And he was. Seconds later he had uncovered a rusted, large handle from under the snow. He pulled with all his strength, finally getting it to slowly creak open.

"What is it?" Hermione looked at the hole in the ground and was surprised when he had grabbed her wrist and pulled her down into it with him.

"I have a class right now." She was slightly concerned but grinned anyway. They were walking down a dark stairway, and, oddly enough, as they went further down, it seemed to get warmer.

"Don't worry about it. Just skip with me this one time." She laughed and squeezed his hand. For a second, an image of Harry proposing the same thing popped into her mind, but it was soon forgotten when they reached the bottom.

There was a pool of hot, steaming water in the middle of the room. Draco let go of her hand and had immediately removed his school robes, and within seconds was nude and into the pool. Hermione could feel herself blush but immediately shook it off.

"Come on, the water's great." His hair was wet and hung to the side of his face, revealing his striking blue eyes. He beckoned her to join him. She felt a little embarrassed momentarily, but he gave her a large toothy grin that allowed her to relax.

She hesitated at first. She had never really been comfortable naked with anyone. Except Harry, that is. When she had removed her school robe, Draco gave her a wider grin, encouraging her to continue.

When she was completely nude, she kneeled at the side of the pool, attempting to slowly slide into the water. She was caught completely off guard, though, when Draco had taken a hold of her wrist and pulled her in.

"Draco!" She pushed the wet hair out of her face and glared at him. He didn't mind though, for he found it very amusing. He apologized, though. Draco pulled Hermione to him, her breasts pushed firmly against his chest. She felt safe then, forgetting there was ever a Voldemort and Death Eaters. She set her head on his shoulder and closed her eyes.

Draco ran his fingers across Hermione's back, pulling her out of her reverie. She remembered something from earlier that week, though, and immediately pulled apart from Draco.

"Draco?" He looked down at her and gave her a questioning look. "Do you know Blaise Zabini?" Draco's eyebrows flew up at the name. He was surprised she would bring him up right now and gave a half laugh.

"Yeah. He's in Slytherin. A seventh year." Draco looked to the side as he thought about him. "And we're somehow related. One of his mother's husbands is connected to my mother's side of the family. Complicated and unimportant. Why?" He said it as an afterthought, but this was cause enough for Hermione to push him farther away from her.

"What? Why does it matter?" Draco was puzzled and began to reach for her. When he had extended his arm, though, she had grabbed his wrist and held it tight in her hand.

"What's that, Draco?" Hermione stared at him with a blank face, apparently angry about what she had found. She held his wrist with her right hand and pointed to the Death Mark with her left.

"It's nothing." He pulled away quickly. "It's common, especially if your parents are associated with the Death Eaters. That's part of my past, though." He was out of breath by now. He didn't care. As long as he was providing a sufficient explanation for the mark. She seemed to accept it though, for she had once again set her head on his shoulder.

"Hermione?" Draco frowned when he realized she was crying, no, sobbing into his shoulder.

"Was it you, then? You were the one who raped me." She closed her eyes, not wanting to look at him. She dug her nails into his shoulder, not wanting to face the facts. If what he said were true, then it would make sense that Daniel had gotten his blue eyes from someone in Draco's family.

"What?" Draco's frown deepened as he thought back. Back a year and a half. He remembered Blaise telling him he had done something. _'Have fun last night? You're a real gentleman, you know that? I guess a score is a score.' Blaise winked but Draco had no clue what he was talking about. He had been too smashed to remember anything. 'Yeah.'_ Draco shook the memory from his mind.

"I don't know." He felt Hermione's nails dig deeper into his back, but continued, "I don't know what happened that night. All I remember is getting really drunk after a quidditch game. Blaise said I had had sex with someone. I didn't think it had been forced." Draco pressed Hermione to his chest, a little frightened by his new discovery. Hermione couldn't explain it, but she didn't want to pull away. Her senses told her to jump out of the pool and to run—run far away from Draco Malfoy as possible, but she didn't. She understood. She didn't see how it was possible, but she understood.

"I _love_ you." Hermione slowly smiled and looked at Draco, waiting for a response. She watched as his mouth fell open and slowly took form of a smile.

"And it's funny, really," He pressed his forehead to hers, "Because I love you." The two laughed silently. Draco leaned in and pressed his lips to hers, kissing her softly but firmly. He wrapped his arms around her waist and looked into her eyes.

Hermione smiled and Draco nodded. He hoisted her up, setting her on the edge of the pool. He then pulled himself up and continued kissing her, moving his kisses down her body.

* * *

Hermione squeezed Draco's hand as they sneaked back into the castle. The two were trying to be as devious as possible, but with their hands locked and both with soaking wet hair, anyone could have guessed what they had been up to.

They were walking up the marble stairs, confident they had gotten away with skipping class, when McGonagall had called to them from below.

"Where have you two been?" She was at the foot of the stairs, tapping her foot impatiently with her hands on her hips. Her stern look could have brought Lucius himself to tears.

"I was looking for you, Professor." Hermione released her grip from Draco and walked down to her. Draco was quick to follow.

"I was told you took Danny with you. You wanted to watch him." Draco nodded at what Hermione was saying. McGonagall frowned, though.

"I did now such thing." Draco's face drained of color then and his mouth fell open.

"What do you mean? You knocked on the door, remember?" Draco laughed nervously, hoping the professor was joking.

"Mister Malfoy, stop this right now! You know I have classes to teach all day long. Breakfast, lunch, right now, and dinner is the only time I have for free time. And during my free time I had meetings scheduled with students, one of which was supposed to be attended by you, Miss Granger." Both Draco and Hermione paled. It was Hermione's biggest fear.

"Well, someone who looked exactly like you, professor, knocked on the common room door a couple hours ago and claimed they wanted to watch Daniel." Draco said in a monotonous voice, a sickening feeling growing in the pit of his stomach. He had an idea of who had taken him.

"I'm sure you're mistaken, Mister Malfoy. It must have been someone else. No worries, though. I'm sure he'll turn up somewhere." Hermione was shocked by her complete lack of concern.

"Now get back to class." McGonagall turned to leave.

"We have to find him." Draco said this quickly, the fear in his eyes very apparent now. Hermione nodded, trusting his instincts.

"I'm going to sprint up to my common room for some things." Hermione nodded and tried swallowing, but her mouth was too dry. She watched as Draco ran quickly up the stairs and around the corner. _'If he's afraid, I don't know how I'm supposed to feel right now.'_


	11. Orb

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters. All credit must be given to J.K. **

The Cradle Will Fall

Chapter 10

"Where are we going, Draco?" The two were running off Hogwarts property very quickly. There was no one around to stop them, which was very suspicious to Hermione.

"Hogsmeade." He seemed very snappy for some reason. Hermione tried to get a better look at his face but ended up tripping and falling instead.

"Are you okay?" The two turned around to see who had spoken. Draco glared and took a step back.

"I'm fine, Harry." Hermione lied and gritted her teeth at the searing pain of her knee. She had a feeling it was very cut up. She could feel the blood seeping through her school robe.

"Where are you two going in a hurry?" Harry pulled Hermione up.

"Nowhere."

"Hogsmeade." Hermione didn't want to turn and look at Draco. She knew he was angry. She wasn't too sure what made her tell Harry. She told herself it was because she wanted to be honest with Harry. That was a lie.

"Oh, I was heading that way anyway." Harry interlocked his fingers with Hermione's and glared at Draco. Hermione could feel her cheeks and ears begin to burn.

"Potter, someone kidnapped Daniel. We're going to get him back." Draco said this as quickly as possible, obviously ready to leave. Hermione could see his face now: his cheeks were bright red. She couldn't tell if he was angry or embarrassed.

"I'm going with you." Draco turned a deeper red but did not say anything else. He wasn't going to waste his time trying to convince Potter to leave him alone. Draco walked quickly down the Hogwarts property in a brooding manner. Hermione tried to continue at his pace, but found her knee would not support herself.

"Let me help." Harry scooped her up and carried her in his arms. She almost wanted to giggle, but knew it wasn't the time.

Hermione glanced sideways, trying to secretly watch Harry.

Hogsmeade was covered in mud. The snow had melted down here and had made it very cumbersome to walk through. Draco walked very slowly through the mud, trying to avoid getting too dirty. Alas, just as he neared his destination, a clump of mud splashed up onto his cloak.

"Son of a—" Draco cursed to himself as he wiped off the mud. Hermione was silent, finding it ridiculous that he was acting in such a manner. _'Why is he acting like this? Maybe Harry and me really does bother him.' _

"Did poor Malfoy get his expensive new cloak all dirty? Mummy would have a fit!" Harry poked fun at him for trying to rub the stain out. Hermione was pensive. She wondered when Draco had gotten his cloak, because it indeed looked new to her.

The three entered a tiny shop. It was very dark inside, but there was a candle lit at the end. Besides the flickering light, there appeared to be no signs of anyone being there before them. Every which way they turned there were cobwebs.

Harry set Hermione down and walked quickly over to a corner of the room. Draco, who was already there, warned Harry not to touch anything. Curious, Hermione limped her way over to the boys.

"What are you looking at?" She asked. She leaned to the side and caught a glimpse of gold. There appeared to be a golden sphere sitting on a dusty desk. It was untouched by dust and spider webs like the rest of the room was.

"Everyone set your hand on the orb." Draco instructed everyone. Hermione set her hand on it after Draco did, but Harry was hesitant.

"Let's go Potter! You're wasting precious time!" Harry remembered why they were there and immediately set his hand on the sphere. He hoped they'd find Daniel in time, wherever they may be going.

Draco pulled out his wand and was beginning to tap the orb in odd ways and places. Hermione assumed it was some type of portkey. She looked into Draco's eyes, trying to decipher what he was thinking. They had been so close not even half an hour ago. She just didn't understand.

Something caught Hermione's eye. She looked at Draco, watching for anything. She knew she had seen _something_.

Hermione gasped, causing him to look down at her with surprise. His eyes widened, knowing what had caused her to do it. Draco's dark, curly lashes were growing lighter and straighter. They were nearly white now.

Hermione tried to scream. It was too late, though. The tug behind her naval confirmed that she would not be able to escape any danger that came her way. Not without becoming hurt.

She screamed bloody murder...just hoping...


	12. A Palace

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters. All credit must be given to J.K. **

The Cradle Will Fall

Chapter 11

Harry stumbled forward but caught himself before he fell. He pushed his hair out of his eyes and looked up. Harry's eyes grew wide and his mouth was agape when he saw the sight. He assumed he was in Draco's manor. No. Manor was an understatement. This place was like a palace, but more eerie. He was in a hall that extended into the shadows. The ceiling was almost non-existent, so high up you couldn't see it. The walls were completely bare. No tapestries, no family photos. It was cold. Harry was so distracted by the hall he didn't notice anything else, not even sound. That included Hermione's earsplitting screams. When his excitement finally diminished, Harry turned around, expecting to find Hermione and Draco. He saw gold...then black.

The Malfoy Manor melted into place around Hermione, only elevating her fear. She continued to scream, but for some reason Harry didn't seem to notice her. She took a step back, unsure of what to do. A couple steps away, Harry stood trying to examine something above.

"Harry! Harry!" She tried desperately to catch his attention, but no matter how loud she screamed, he somehow remained deep in his own thoughts.

She looked over to her left and noticed Lucius trying to get the mud stain out of his new cloak. Hermione attempted to sneak over to Harry before Malfoy looked up. For some reason, though, her feet would not budge. The harder she tried lifting her foot, the heavier it would become. She must have been under a spell. One of the few spells she didn't know.

"If you think you're going to outsmart me, Granger, you're wrong." Malfoy spoke, startling Hermione. He was standing straight now, looking very dominant and fearsome. If he couldn't see the fear in her eyes, he most definitely could sense it.

Malfoy walked slowly towards Harry. Hermione continued to scream, but to no avail. His pale hand disappeared into the black folds of his cloak, reappearing seconds later with the golden orb they had used to get here. He was not, however, using it to portkey somewhere else. He lifted it high above his head.

"Harry!" Hermione tried once more. His head snapped forward and he began to look to the sides. As he turned around, Malfoy smashed the heavy orb against the side of his head. Harry lay still on the floor, blood oozing from his head. The sight alone caused Hermione to feel lightheaded. Malfoy turned then, focusing his menacing gaze upon her. He smirked, momentarily reminding her of Draco. She cursed herself for ever believing this man was Draco.

He stood face to face with her now, laughing at her silence. His gray eyes pierced through her like ice, sending shivers through her entire body. He set his hand on her chest and pulled at the fastenings of her school robe, pushing it off when he had undone them all. She felt bare, but was relieved he didn't proceed to remove her school uniform.

He pressed himself against her, grabbing every spot available to him.

"Please...Please stop." Hermione's voice was barely audible, but he still heard her. She regretted saying anything, though. He stepped back, his face contorted in rage. He lifted his hand and Hermione squeezed her eyes shut. He didn't slap her like she was expecting. He punched her, hard, leaving two large bruises on the left side of her face and a bleeding cut lip.

"Would you like to say anything else? If you do, go ahead. And for every word you utter you will pay." He hissed into her ear. She shuddered at his voice but made sure to nod.

Malfoy slid his hands into her hair and moved closer. He kissed her neck slowly, moving up to her mouth. Hermione kept her eyes shut, not wanting to look at him. She wished Harry could save the day. That was impossible though.

He was sucking on her cut lip now. She couldn't help feeling pleasure. Perhaps that was why she was clenching her teeth together. She didn't want to lose control of herself. Especially to this man. This disgusting, vile man.

Hermione opened her eyes and realized everything was blurry. Her body was completely numb and she almost forgot where she was. She remembered, though, when her vision became clear once more. It had been a long time. At least fifteen minutes.

She had somehow been laid out on the stone floor, which explained why she felt so cold. Malfoy towered over her as he buttoned up his trousers. He had had his way with her and she hadn't done anything about it.

"Get up, mudblood." Malfoy kicked her hard in the side as he tucked his shirt in. She pushed herself onto her knees. "You've spoiled my family's good name. For that, you'll suffer." Hermione looked up momentarily, just in time to spot the golden orb coming down fast. And then...nothing...

* * *

The second Harry woke up, he opened his mouth. It felt as if it were stuffed full with cotton, making it difficult for him to breathe. His eyes shot open suddenly and he sat up quickly.

"I'm late for class." He frowned when he noticed his surroundings. He was in a very long, dark dungeon. The only light source in the dungeon came from the very end of the dungeon, which was about thirty cells to his left. Harry squinted into the dark, trying to figure out an escape route. He could make out stairs to his right that lead straight into the ceiling. He could not, however, figure out how to get out of the cell. There were no openings to it. All the cells had metal bars without openings. They were also very small and cramped, only allowing one to sit, not stand. He felt like a gorilla.

Harry crawled to the back of the cell and set his head against the wall. He wasn't sure what happened.

"One moment I'm checking out Malfoy Manor, the next I'm in a dungeon. This is Draco Malfoy's fault." He rubbed his face and realized his head was wet. He pulled his hand away, eyes widening when he realized it was red. His bleeding head was soon forgotten when he heard stirring to his left, though.

"Who's there?" He slowly crawled to the edge of his miniature prison, pressing himself against the bars to better see into the next cell.

"Hermione?" She was lying against the vertical bars at the other end of her cell. Harry noticed she had blood streaming from a spot on her head as well. Unlike Harry, though, she had bruises on her arms and very dark bruises on the left side of her face (his right). She was in her school uniform, which puzzled Harry.

"Hermione, where did your robes go? Did that bastard Malfoy do this?" He reached through the bars, beckoning her to come to the other side of her cell. She was not awake, though. When her eyes finally did flicker open Harry's motioning became more frantic.

"Over here." Harry whispered to her. She took her left hand and pressed it against her right side to stop the throbbing. With her right hand, she attempted to crawl over to where Harry was. Harry tried tearing a piece of his robe off for her, but it wouldn't rip.

"Shit. That always works for people in films." Hermione began to laugh, stopping immediately when the bruises on her side began to sting. Harry pulled off his school tie and tried wiping the blood from her face.

"Thank you." Even those few words caused her much pain. It hurt her to even breathe.

"Did Malfoy do this?" The two clasped their hands together when he said this. When she nodded, his grip grew suddenly tight.

"Harry, you're hurting me." He loosened his grip but did not let go of her hands.

"Sorry. It's just—I'll beat that Malfoy the second I get my hands on him. I knew we shouldn't have followed him." He frowned.

"No—Harry—Draco didn't do this to me," Harry now looked truly puzzled. _'But she just said...'_ He thought to himself, "It wasn't Draco. It was Lucius Malfoy. I think he used Polyjuice Potion to trick us. His body started to return to normal right as we touched the orb. I'm a little confused by it as well." Now her bruises were searing with pain, but by now she didn't care. Just then, a burst of purple shot at them, causing them to fly to opposite ends of their cells.

"Quite yous!" A squat house elf walked over to their cells. He had an eye missing and his skin was very leathery. He looked ancient. He eyed Hermione's bare legs and grinned, revealing six teeth.

"Pervert." Hermione's voice sounded very meek but she was angry and very serious. She pulled her skirt down, snapping the elf out of Perv-land.

&"You shtay aware firm eachudder. Mashta's odash." He winked at Hermione, seemingly unfazed by the fact that he spoke as if he had a mouth full of marbles.

"And who are you?" Harry pushed himself off from the stone floor and came up to the cell bars. He glared at the elf, determined not look away.

&"Meh? Meh ish Bashtawd." The two teenagers laughed but the elf did not understand. He was about to return to his sleep in his dark corner, but delayed his sleep when he heard noise from the entrance. Harry pushed his face against the opposite cell, trying to see what was happening.

The ceiling above the stairs were opening up, flooding the dungeon with more light. A figure walked down the steps carefully and then headed towards their cells. Harry squinted and sighed.

"Malfoy! How did you get here? Help us out!" Hermione sat up quickly when she heard Harry speak.

"Draco?" She couldn't quite believe her eyes. She smiled at the sight of him and was relieved he was there. He was not, however, smiling.

"Draco? What's wrong? Are you going to help us out?" Hermione tried to speak to him again, hoping he'd respond this time.

"Of course." He said in a monotone voice. She sensed no emotion from him. Not excitement, not joy, not gloom, not even anger. It didn't make sense to her. Draco pulled out his wand and tapped the two cells. Immediately the front bars disappeared. Harry crawled out quickly, relived to be out of the cramped space. Hermione hesitated briefly before Harry proffered a hand to her. It felt nice to stand and stretch their legs.

The three stood very close now. Close enough for Hermione to notice the bruises on the right side of Draco's face.

"Are you alright?" She reached out her hand and intended to caress his face. Harry felt a little jealous at this. Draco didn't allow it, though. He stepped back and frowned. Hermione dropped her right hand to her side.

"Follow me." He turned and walked towards the exit. Harry and Hermione both exchanged frowns but complied. He was their only way out. The odd thing, though, was Bastard the elf had not tried to stop them. In fact, he continued to stand in his spot, hands folded behind his back.

* * *

_You stay away from each other. Master's orders. _

Me? Me is Bastard.


	13. From the Source

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters. All credit must be given to J.K. **

The Cradle Will Fall

Chapter 12

"Where are we going?" Hermione whispered to Harry. "I'm guessing the exit is somewhere on the first floor. Not wherever we're going." She tried to explain her worries without Draco overhearing them. Harry tried to keep calm and be rational, but she was right. They had followed Draco up many flights of stairs and he assumed they were at least on the third or fourth floor. And though he and Draco were enemies, he had never seen him act like this before.

Draco watched the two from the corner of his eye, trying to catch what they were saying. _'Well, aren't they the perfect couple?'_ Draco clenched his fists but continued walking.

"Right here." He stopped abruptly, causing the two to fall silent quickly. Draco set his hand on the doorknob and, squeezing tight, turned and pushed the door open. Hermione and Harry followed Draco into the bright room, the door slamming shut behind them. Harry turned and tried the doorknob. It was locked shut, though. He reached for his wand but remembered it had been taken.

Draco walked towards a chair and sat down, shielding his eyes with his left hand. Hermione looked over the room once. It was small. It was also very well lit and littered with chairs and sofas. There was a set of glass doors that lead out to a balcony, and from what she could see, it was still dark out. A couple hours past midnight, she guessed.

"Daniel!" She nearly screamed when she noticed him. He was sitting on the floor and playing with blocks behind one of the many chairs in the room. She walked quickly towards him, happy to know he was safe_. 'That's why Draco brought us here!'_ She smiled and began to reach for her son.

"I don't think so." Someone stepped between them at the last moment, causing her to stumble and fall back. She crawled backwards and pushed herself up.

"Macnair." Harry forgot about the doorknob when he heard Hermione speak. She stood in the middle of the room and not far from her was Macnair, grinning like a moron. He also noticed Lucius Malfoy near the back of the room, which was hard, since Malfoy's complexion almost blended in with the white walls. Draco continued to sit in his chair, unfazed by the appearance of the two men.

"What are you doing here?" Hermione demanded, though she knew she'd probably get hurt speaking in that tone. Macnair laughed.

"I was McGonagall! Twas fun too! I touched my own breasts. They weren't as perky as I'd hoped, though." Hermione cringed at what he was saying. He was so foul; she couldn't even imagine what his parents must have been like. She noticed Malfoy behind him, walking slowly over to where she was.

"Draco." She tried alerting him while keeping her eyes fixed on the two men. Malfoy stopped behind the chair and bent over for a second. He reappeared, carrying Daniel in his arms and smirking. Hermione could feel her eyes brimming with hot tears.

"Don't hurt him. Draco!" She whipped around, hoping Draco was trying to help her out of the situation. He wasn't. Draco remained sitting in his chair, his eyes covered by his hands. He had not budged since they had first entered the room.

"Traitor!" Harry yelled now, not able to control himself. "You-are-a-traitor!" Harry's face was bright red and the cut on his head began to bleed fresh blood.

"So I've been told." Draco replied without moving his hand. Harry moved towards Hermione, pushing her behind him.

"Cute. Like your skinny little body could protect anyone." Macnair laughed at his own findings.

"It's unfortunate, really," Lucius spoke now, his voice calm with aristocracy, yet menacing like a killer, "that the first half-blood in the Malfoy bloodline started with my grandson." Malfoy advanced slowly towards them now. Daniel was waving at Hermione and didn't seem to notice the danger she was in.

"But family is family, am I right?" He gave a stiff, fake smile to them. "I do wish Daniel were a pureblood, though. Even his name rings muggle. It would make everything much easier on my behalf. But, as I've learned in the past, you can't have everything. No one has to know about this, I suppose. And I don't plan on people knowing either. Seems a little complicated." He stopped in front of Draco but continued to speak.

"He has the potential to become a pureblood. Maybe not in blood, so to speak, but in quality. And the way to do that? Anyone?" He raised an eyebrow, knowing his question was rhetorical but still trying to amuse himself.

"You stomp out the problem from the source. We've got to destroy what he has left of the muggle world." Hermione nearly fainted, frightened Malfoy was going to hurt her child.

"Don't hurt him. I'm begging you." Hermione was crying now, not able to hold anything in any longer. Lucius simply laughed.

"Silly girl. Have you not been paying attention? We've got to stamp the problem out from the source...That means you, you idiot!" He dropped Daniel into Draco's lap. Draco uncovered his eyes and carried Daniel to a remote spot of the room where he wouldn't be distracted by the others.

Lucius walked quickly towards Hermione, pulling out his wand to curse her. Harry lunged at him, though, grabbing his wand and throwing it towards the wall.

"YOU STUPID—" Harry kneed Malfoy in the groin and shoved him onto the floor. He was quickly retained by Macnair, though. He held Harry tight and was unfazed by his kicking and flailing arms.

Lucius stood up quickly and walked towards Hermione. She was unsure of what to do, unable to think. Her only savior was literally in the arms of the enemy. She did the only thing she could think of. Run.

She ran to the opposite side of the room, Lucius slowly walking towards her now, knowing he had won the battle. Hermione threw herself at Draco's feet, openly sobbing and hysterical. She took hold of his hands and kissed them over and over again.

"Please...please..." She sobbed this over and over again. Daniel laughed at his mothers actions.

"I'm going to die!" She tried to say through her crying. She lifted her right hand to his cheek, trying to make him understand. He pushed her hand gently down, though, and covered his eyes with his hand once more. That was when Lucius grabbed her. He wrapped his arms around her waist and hoisted her up over his shoulder. She kicked hard and her screams became louder and more hysteric, but no one would save her now.

Lucius opened the glass doors and walked out onto the balcony, Macnair following behind. The two men nodded and held the teenagers legs, dangling their upper halves over the railing. Three or four stories below were six to eight trolls, all of which were grunting angrily.

"You know," Lucius spoke again, "the trolls haven't eaten in two days. You two will be very welcomed. I'm not too sure how long you'll last, though." Both men were laughing now. Hermione started to shake violently and Lucius began to lose his grip on her legs.

"Too bad the Dark Lord couldn't be here tonight. I'm sure he'll be pleased that I've rid the world of Harry Potter and company. You have only been a nuisance to his rise to power." He could feel Hermione's legs slip from his grip a little more.

"Well, this is where we say our goodbyes. You were good for about fifteen minutes. " Lucius nodded to Macnair and they both let go.

Draco became violently sick all over the floor. Their hysterical screams when they were released sent a cold shiver down his spine. He couldn't believe it. They were gone. He wasn't about to disobey his father, especially after he betrayed him to Aurors last year. Lucius Malfoy had too much power.

Draco wiped his mouth off with his right sleeve and with his left he wiped the newly shed tears from his eyes. _'Father despises tears.'_

"Come Danny." He lifted Daniel and walked silently out of the room, avoiding conversation with his father.


	14. Clump of Bushes

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters. All credit must be given to J.K. **

The Cradle Will Fall

Chapter 13

Hermione screamed with all her might, somehow believing the louder she screamed, the better her chances of survival. Her irrational thinking did nothing though, and within seconds an unusually enormous troll had caught her in its callus hands.

Harry instinctively flailed his arms as he fell, shouting in fear when he realized how very large the trolls were. The troll he had encountered in first year had been miniscule compared to these. They were like super trolls. Giant trolls. Disgusting.

Harry was caught by a large, dominant looking troll, who immediately tightened its hand around him. The several trolls left empty handed were now shoving and battering the two holding Hermione and Harry. Harry quickly wiggled his arms free when he noticed Hermione's eyes starting to droop and body become limper by the second.

He saw his opportunity to escape when the troll holding him was suddenly shoved back towards a few trees. Harry stretched his arms up and managed to grab hold of a branch. The troll—now extremely wound in fighting—released Harry from his grasp and lunged towards the nearest troll.

Harry watched with sweaty hands as the troll violently hit another troll, the troll holding Hermione. He knew what was coming next, and cringed when the troll being beaten allowed Hermione to slip from his hand. She hit the ground with a loud thump and didn't move.

"Hermione." Harry squeezed his eyes shut tight before making up his mind. Slowly, he allowed his hands to slip off the branch, hitting the ground with a 'CRACK.' Harry bit down on his lip to keep from shouting in pain. The rowdy crowd of trolls was becoming louder, and their shoving became more violent, to the point where they were nearly stomping on Hermione. Without hesitating, Harry pushed himself off the ground and limped quickly over to her.

She stared up at him with a blank face, half-conscious and completely unaware of what was happening around them..

"Hermione, we'll be crushed." He shook her, trying to snap her out of her state. If he could carry her he would, but his leg refused. Harry thought of one way to rouse her, but hesitated, worried he would hurt her. A troll from the mob stumbled forward towards them, and his giant foot was within inches of crushing them both. _'Rather be in pain than dead.'_ He dug his fingers deep into Hermione's bruised side without hesitation. Hermione's eyes flew open as she gasped for air, the pain in her side so immense she was awoken from her trance.

"Hurry." Harry held on to her for support as they stumbled their way off the large troll field. Harry looked back as they were fleeing to find one troll who had noticed them. Harry choked in fear when he realized it was quickly pursuing them. He tried his best to move quicker with his hurt leg, but Hermione was still dizzy, so neither could bring themselves to speed their pace. For some reason, though, the troll was not able to leave the area it was in. Probably a magical barricade.

They eventually made it off the extremely large Malfoy property. How long it took they'll never remember. Long enough. Hermione gripped Harry's side tighter as she felt him start to collapse. She eyed the dirt road that started at the Manor and weaved its way into the dark. It had to lead somewhere, but neither had the energy to follow it.

"I'm going to faint." Harry closed his eyes and dug his nails deep into Hermione's back, causing her to wince. She understood. They couldn't go any further tonight. They'd have to hide.

Harry opened his eyes momentarily and pointed to the field of trees to the right. "There." They worked their way off the road and made their way over to a clump of bushes behind a large tree.

"We won't be seen from here." Hermione said as she allowed Harry collapse to the ground. He didn't hear her, though, for he was fast asleep. Hermione crawled down behind the bushes as well and set her head on Harry's chest, soon falling asleep as Harry did.

* * *

The Gryffindor common room was nearly empty, but a few seventh years still remained, along with one sixth year.

"I'm starting to worry about them. I had lunch with Hermione and Harry wasn't there. Harry showed up to DADA and Hermione wasn't there! Harry and I weren't too worried, figuring she was off somewhere with Danny or something." Ron bit on his thumb nail before continuing. "Towards the end of class Harry realized he didn't have his wand. Said he forgot it somewhere. When class ended Harry left to go get it and I haven't seen him since." Ron said before returning to biting his nails. He knew he shouldn't worry so much about Hermione and Harry, but he had a tendency to imagine the worst.

Ginny tried to give him a comforting smile. It didn't help. "Ah, Ron. I'm sure they'll show up eventually. And when they do, they'll have a really good explanation. You'll see." She gave him a slap on the back before returning to her spot by the fireplace.

"Maybe," started Seamus as Lavender shook her head at him, "maybe they're just off somewhere having sex. Hermione has her own chamber." Seamus nodded to himself matter-of-factly, as if he knew all along. Lavender slapped Seamus' arm.

"I don't know," Lavender hesitated, "Mandy Brocklehurst tells me Harry was having lunch with her. This morning's snow had melted all around the lake, leaving the place very muddy and completely unromantic." The group waited impatiently for the point of the latter sentence. "Well, anyway! I think Harry was bothered by the mud or something because he absolutely blew Mandy off near the end of lunch. Very rude."

Seamus shrugged his shoulders as he concentrated on his thoughts. "Ok, so that explains where Harry was during lunch. And if he left Mandy by the lake, maybe that's where he left his wand. So after DADA today, he probably headed over to the lake. Then we don't know."

"What about Hermione, though? Where was she?" Ron started chewing the nails on his other hand.

"What about Hermione? For all we know, she could be in her private chamber as we speak, doing her homework and trying to get Danny to sleep." Ginny tried providing a logical explanation. The group nodded and agreed Hermione was not a major concern at the moment.

"We can't do much," Ginny said, "and we don't know for sure that Harry's missing. All we can do is wait and see. Ron, if he doesn't show up to your first class tomorrow, we'll go to Dumbledore." They all nodded in agreement, some less worried than others, and headed to their dormitories.


	15. Just Martin

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters. All credit must be given to J.K. **

The Cradle Will Fall

Chapter 14

_It was the summer after my fifth year. I had only been home a week when my mother had put me on a train to a family friend's home. The arrest of my father was too much stress for her to handle and me arriving home would not help her situation. She promised to send for me the second she was feeling well. I didn't care. I had plans of my own._

_I refused to spend my summer with some stupid friend of my mother's. No doubt they probably had some type of nut case in their family. My mother's friends were all the same. A muggle lover here, a half-blood there. It was revolting. Father wouldn't have sent me to a loony family. If it were father that needed time alone, he would have sent me off to a fancy hotel with a satchel of galleons. And that's exactly what I did. _

_I arrived at Hôtel de la Manche, an unplottable hotel near the English Channel and my bags were immediately taken to my suite. The Malfoy name was practically gold in itself, so when the hotel manager came to greet me, he was ecstatic and was glad to have me for as long as I wished to stay. No pay needed. _

_The next morning I awoke to the blinding sun filtering itself through the curtains and into my suite. After dressing for the day I immediately made my way down to the hotel's dining hall for breakfast._

_I sat alone, slightly bitter that my father would allow himself to be arrested. I couldn't stop thinking about Potter and how he always managed to insult me before I left for the summer. It was Potter's fault my father was in prison and he was going to pay._

"_You're a Malfoy, aren't you?" A young blond boy my age with rosy cheeks sat down opposite me. I was slightly startled by the appearance of the boy but he was welcomed company. I hated not having someone to talk to, and if he knew who I was he couldn't be all that bad._

"_Why, yes. I'm Draco Malfoy, Lucius' son." I stopped slouching and sat straight in my chair like I was taught. I pushed my breakfast to the side and folded my hands in my lap, trying to make a good impression on the boy. 'Behave like a gentleman' my mother always reminded me._

"_Your father's a crook." My courteous smile melted from my face and was soon replaced by a frown. How dare this boy speak of my father this way? Perhaps he didn't realize how much power the Malfoy name had. I could feel my face absolutely burning._

"_Pardon? Do you have any idea—"_

"_Hey! Hey! Settle down! See what I mean? Your father's taught you to be very defensive." The boy continued to smile at me as if we were talking about the weather. _

"_Who are you?" My faced was very sour and unattractive by now, but I didn't care. This boy was truly offending me and I was about ready to retreat to my suite._

"_My name is Martin. Just Martin." He grinned._

"_Well, Just Martin, I'd like to have you know that without my father there wouldn't be many of the organizations you know of today." I held my chin up and refused to accept anything else._

"_Like what? Death Eaters of Britain?" That was not what I meant and he knew it. "How many friends do you have, Draco?" I was surprised by his question, and slightly embarrassed._

"_I have plenty of friends." I counted three. Maybe four._

"_Oh?" Martin wasn't convinced. Why did it matter? He was not important to me. _

"_Your father's the reason for your lack of friends. He has you believing you're better than others. He has you believing you're above your peers. People don't like that, Draco. People don't appreciate it and resent you for it." I tried my hardest to stop listening to the boy and leave. I couldn't though. What the boy was saying made sense. I hated it though. It made me furious._

"_Your father has raised you to obey his every whim. You're not his son. You're his slave. You're too blind to see it. You're trapped in his grasp. With him away in prison you have a chance to be free. Fly away, Draco. Fly." I was starting to have an inkling this boy was a friend of my mothers. _

"_I'm not trapped. You're just mad." I slammed my hands on the table and pushed myself out of my seat. I'd had enough of the boy's preaching._

_I locked myself in my suite and didn't come out that day. I sat at my window and watched the freezing waters below. The glare of the sun on the water made it look so enticing. I couldn't stop thinking of what Martin had been telling me, though. Was I really trapped? I had always felt free to do what I felt. Until now, that is. The idea of starting my life anew was as enticing as the gleaming waters below the hotel. What if Martin had been lying, though? I'll freeze and drown._


	16. State of Mind

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters. All credit must be given to J.K. **

The Cradle Will Fall

Chapter 15

**October 6th, 1997**

_I was at the hotel for a month before my mother owled me to come home. Every single morning I would go down to the dining hall to eat breakfast, and every single time Martin sat opposite to me and preached about freedom. Every day I was able to listen to him longer before leaving. It was a very confusing time. I'd sit in my suite watching the water, contemplating what had been said that day. 'My father ha expected too much of me. He's the reason everyone thinks I'm a pain in the ass.'_

_Then my mind set would shift and what Martin had said to me sounded completely ludicrous. 'Father has only been good to me. He only wants the best for me.' This thinking appeared less, though, as the weeks grew on. Sometimes I couldn't sleep—I wasn't able to stop thinking. _

_Was there freedom to even obtain? I was always free to do what I felt. What did Martin mean by fly away? He said I was trapped. But by whom? And for what reason? _

_After many talks with Martin I was able to figure out all the answers to my questions on my own. I hoped they were correct..._

_My father controlled me, controlled who I was as a person. He wanted me to behave like him: proud, above commoners, a pureblood. I was trapped by me; I had trapped myself. By obeying my father so unquestioningly I had prevented myself from having a mind of my own. I had prevented the growth of me as a person. With my father's watchful eye now gone I wouldn't feel obliged to behave like him. My life might be better._

_My last day at the hotel I went down to the dining hall, anticipating on telling Martin of my decision to wash my hands clean of my old life. I wanted to thank Martin for convincing me to stop behaving like my father. Later on in the year I found that I would still have instances where I would be very narrow minded. I couldn't control those times, though. It was as if my father was holding on tight to the Lucius in me. He wouldn't allow me to let it slip away so easily. _

_Martin wasn't there. I waited half an hour for him but he never showed up. I never became upset with him, though. Somehow I understood that he couldn't come. And so I left. I left the hotel a newer person. I was still the same Malfoy. I was less judgmental, though. I was less Lucius Malfoy. I understood things, people, everything more. I was an adult. _

"Draco." Draco dropped his quill and hurriedly shoved the letter into one of his many desk drawers.

"Yes father?" He looked up at his father who was standing in his doorway.

"Let's fence." He said this in a detached voice before quickly turning to leave. Draco nodded silently, though he knew his father could not see him.

* * *

Draco panted as he set his hands on his knees. There had been a firm knock on the heavy wooden door and his father was now carefully answering it. This gave Draco a second to rest.

The Malfoy's fencing room was very large and held very little light, not ideal for fencing at all. But Draco was used to it, having spent much time in the room, and was able to see Nott, his father's friend, enter the room. Lucius turned and looked at Draco hesitantly before speaking.

"Draco, help your mother pack everything." Draco blinked, nodded, and then left the room. Once Draco had completely shut the wooden door, Lucius' attention was turned to his friend, who was smirking at the moment.

"Lucius, you crafty devil. Narcissa said I'd find a surprise in the fencing room. And she was right. How'd you do it?" Lucius lifted an eyebrow.

"It's a long story." He said this as he set his fencing equipment on a nearby table. Nott was one of his oldest and closest friends. They had done everything together. They had taken trips to foreign countries, studied for their N.E.W.T.S., and even joined the Death Eaters. Lucius knew Nott wouldn't allow him to brush off the question.

"Oh, come on Lucius. I'm really interested. I thought you were a dead man."

"I should have been. But," Nott leaned in so as to not miss a word, "Narcissa loves me too much." Lucius watched as his friend slowly lifted his brows in interest.

* * *

Draco bit on his lower lip as he made his way to his mother's chamber. His mother. She was the cause of all this. The reason his father was home. The reason he had betrayed Hermione. The reason Potter had called him a traitor. Draco thought back to the day before, when he had awoken to find himself at home, in his own bed.

**October 5th, 1997**

"What the hell? Where—why am I here?" Draco rubbed his eyes after taking in the scene. No. He wasn't imagining it. He was really home. A movement in the corner of his eye startled Draco into reaching for his wand.

"Wha—Where's my wand." Draco's eyes widened.

"Here." He looked over at who had spoken.

"Mother?" There she was, sitting in a chair by his bedside, his wand twirling around in her hand. A thought suddenly occurred to him.

"Wait. You're okay?" His mother was talking. She was not in the state she had been when he had visited her last. She nodded and grinned.

"I've always been okay, Draco." He shook his head slowly in confusion. More thoughts began to arise.

"Where's Daniel? How did I get here?"

"Don't worry, Draco. The child is safe in another room." Narcissa licked her lips before continuing. "Macnair brought you home." Draco rubbed his temples as he recalled what had happened. After leaving Hermione in the Great Hall, he had run to his common room for floo powder. As the wall to his common room slid shut, he was shocked to see someone standing in the middle of his common room. Before he could sputter 'Macnair?' the man had pulled out his wand and shot a nonverbal spell at him. The next thing he knew, he was in his large, oversized bed at home.

"Why—" His mother gave him a stern but concerned look and held up her hand, suggesting he stop talking. Handing him his wand, she made her way over and onto her son's bed and enveloped him in a hug. She didn't let go.

"Draco, love, you're in a great deal of trouble." Draco frowned in bewilderment as his mother began to stroke his hair.

"You're father is very angry with you." Draco pulled away at this. He tried responding to what she had said, but Narcissa prevented this when she placed a finger on his mouth. _'Father's out?' _Draco's heart began to pump. '_He should be dead_.'

"No matter. He's fixing everything, like he usually does. The two Gryffindors are in the dungeon." She appeared to smile at this, if only slightly.

"What? What two Gryffindors?" He couldn't keep silent any longer.

"Don't you know? You're father brought a mudblood and Potter to our manor." Draco choked and began to pale. "Potter was an accident, but I suppose everything will turn out fine. They'll both be killed at midnight." Draco squeezed his hand around his wand as he checked his wrist watch. Three hours.

"Killed? How's that fine! You can't just kill them, people will find out." Draco could feel himself losing his composure, but he was sure his mother didn't noticed. She twirled a lock of her long hair around her finger complacently.

"Of course he can kill them. He has his reasons and that's enough for me. I trust him, Draco, and you should too." He wanted so hard to shake her, but he was afraid—afraid of his father and what he was going to do to him. He could feel the tips of his finger begin to numb. "As for him escaping, it's a long story." Narcissa leaned into Draco and kissed his forehead affectionately.

"Draco, you will definitely be punished for what you did last December. But your father loves you. Obey his wishes and I'm sure he'll minimize the punishment. It'll be best for everyone." Draco's hands were shaking and his teeth were chattering as she finished speaking. _'Father's back. I'm dead for sure._' Draco nodded.

**October 6th**

"Mother? You need my help?" Draco walked into his mother's chamber and spotted her struggling with a boggart in one of her traveling bags.

* * *

"Well? Come on. I'm interested." Nott waited expectantly as Lucius glared coldly at him.

"Oh, yes. And satisfying your curiosity is what I strive for, you know." The sarcasm seeped from his voice, but Nott appeared unaffected by it.

"Alright then. It's a little hard to understand. I'll have to go back a year or so." Lucius sighed and pulled a lock of hair from his face.

**December 27th, 1996**

Lucius was shoved into the large hall and fell to the ground, his hands bound tightly behind his back. There were dozens of Aurors running around everywhere, a few scribbling frantically on rolls of parchment, a few gripping Lucius' arms tightly so no escape could transpire, and the rest were loudly celebrating the capture with rude remarks and heckling. The noise level was so intense the shriek from further down the hall was barely audible. Lucius heard it though, and looking up, spotted Narcissa quickly sprinting towards him.

As she neared him, two Aurors took hold of her arms to prevent her from advancing any further.

"I don't think so, madam." An older looking Auror glared at Narcissa, suspicious of her involvement with Lucius' escape from Azkaban.

"Wait." Everyone in the room was silenced by Draco's voice, who was exiting the room where Lucius had arrived. "She has no involvement in this." Though he was the youngest person in the room, his firmness was convincing.

"I don't trust you. Don't think you're off the hook quite yet." The Auror narrowed his eyes further and reluctantly released Narcissa's arm. He made sure to strip her of her wand, first, though.

Draco squeezed his fists as he watched his mother fall to the ground. The Auror had given her a little shove, but the crowd had thinned, so there weren't many people left to notice.

Draco stepped back and returned to his spot on the cold stone wall. Narcissa, however, was quick to run and kneel in front of Lucius, grabbing hold of his dark robes and twisting it around her pale hands. The two Aurors guarding Lucius appeared uncomfortable and tried to pull Lucius back, but the sobbing woman refused to let him go.

Lucius' stone face appeared to soften as Narcissa released her hands from his robes and threw her arms around him. "I missed you. They never let anyone see you in there." Her arms tightened around him as she set her head on his shoulder. Lucius wanted so badly to hug her back and tell her he would fix everything that had happened, but alas, his hands were bound and there were too many lingering Aurors for him to talk. _My son—my only son did this_. He shook the thought from his mind. It was a good thing Draco was standing somewhere behind Lucius, for if he had been in view, Lucius would surely be in a fit of rage once more.

"What will happen to you?" Narcissa whispered into his ear. He didn't know.

"I guess it depends on how many are testifying." He had lost much popularity when he was arrested last summer.

"But it doesn't matter," Lucius leaned in to Narcissa's ear and whispered so silently, she almost didn't hear it, "because you'll find a way." She pulled away quickly and looked at her husband, spotting a trace of a smile. But it was gone quickly; he appeared stone faced once again.

"I love you." She set her hand on his shoulder before leaning in and pressing her lips against his.

"Oi!" The Aurors guarding Lucius were slow to react, unsure of what to do. Finally, one of the Aurors pulled out his wand and pointed at Narcissa, who was quickly thrown from Lucius and came to a stop a great distance away.

"Let's get out of here, boys." After a few outraged cries from women, the remaining Aurors dispersed, all of their eyes trained on Lucius as they led him out. You could not apparate in or out of Malfoy Manor.

"Good riddance." Draco muttered to himself as the hall door slammed shut. He pushed himself off the wall once more and walked slowly over to his mother, who was staring out the window at the falling snow. She remained sitting on the cold stone floor.

"Mother?" His tone softened. She looked up at him without speaking. She could see the fear in his eyes. She could see that he was guilty.

"Why Draco? Haven't we always been a good family? Didn't you enjoy your life?" Her eyes narrowed when Draco rolled his.

"Good family? You call Death Eater activity good? You're insane." He grabbed his mother's wrist and tried pulling her off the floor. But she resisted.

"Maybe I am! But blood's thicker than water. This is your family Draco. Families should stick together through thick and thin." She slumped further into the ground. "You've always known that. What's changed, son?" She looked into her son's eyes sincerely. Draco opened his mouth, but no sound was emitted. She frowned and her eyes slowly unfocused.

* * *

It was said that Narcissa went insane that day—the day Lucius Malfoy was arrested. If she hadn't gone insane then, people were convinced that she had become insane on September 3rd, 1997. That day Lucius went before the Wizengamot and Chief Warlock, Albus Dumbledore. But his testimony was not good enough, and there were more witnesses who testified against him than for him. So, after being in Azkaban since December, Lucius was sentenced to be executed on September 26th for dark arts affiliation, association with the Dark Lord, and escaping Azkaban. If the dementor's were still under the ministries control, he would have definitely received the kiss. But they weren't. Some were unsure as to which was worse: having an end put to your life or soul.

Either would have driven Narcissa insane. And insane she became. Or so it was believed.

After Lucius' arrest, Narcissa had been taken to the ministry to be interrogated thoroughly, against Draco's request. He, however, was still an underage wizard, and his word held no authority with the ministry.

The ministry found it difficult to interrogate Narcissa, though. She never opened her mouth to speak, never nodded or shook her head, never even acknowledged anyone was in the room other than herself. She stared ahead blankly, about as responsive as a vegetable. Eventually, after many days, the ministry was forced to release her, seeing as how they could not get any information out of her.

Draco was relieved when they had allowed her to return home, but the fact that she appeared to have receded into the depths of her mind worried him. She was as unresponsive to him as she was to the ministry. She ate, slept, and performed other normal activities, but she did not speak, acknowledge, or focus her eyes on anything.

Aurors came to the manor, to the displeasure of Draco, every day after she had arrived home to see if she had emerged from her state, and every day they came, they left disappointed. After a few weeks, they stopped coming all together. It was hopeless.

A few healers from St. Mungo's had stopped in to see Narcissa. Draco had thought they could tell him what was wrong with her, even cure her. But Draco was disappointed when they told him she appeared to be perfectly healthy, and could not explain her state.

Reluctantly, Draco was forced to leave his mother at the Parkinson's home. He had missed so much school tending to his mother. He felt that if she was unresponsive now, she'd be unresponsive later. And so, Draco left his mother and returned to school.

What Draco didn't know was that Narcissa's mind had been working vigorously to produce a plan. The perfect plan.

Draco returned from school in mid-June and retrieved his mother from the Parkinson's. He knew from weekly owls that she was still the same. He was frustrated, but did not stop caring for his mother all summer long. Alas, he was forced to deposit her at the Parkinson's once more when September 1st came rolling around.

But a few days after he had arrived at Hogwarts, he was sent an owl that informed him of his father's sentencing. He was quick to make a visit to the Parkinson's. He wanted to be with his mother.

Draco didn't believe that his mother could have known of his father's sentencing, so he was shocked to find her still in her blank state, but now in bed and not eating. Draco frowned suspiciously at the sight, but nonetheless tried to help her.

"I'll make a request to the ministry, for you, mother. See if you can visit father before—" He stopped and sighed. Looking over to his mother in her bed, he thought he saw her blink, perhaps in response to him. But then he shook it off as his imagination. Draco was back to school soon after his visit.

Though his request took what seemed like forever to be responded to, it did finally arrive. His mother would be allowed a visit on the 25th of September, the day before Lucius' execution, with an Auror escort. He owled the papers to the Parkinson's and hoped his mother didn't become too distraught when she made her visit. Of course she wouldn't, though. She would hardly react, like always.

**September 25th**

The windows at the ministry showed that it was dark outside, darker than it normally was. Lucius was to be executed the next day. There was his wife, Narcissa, one arm being held by an Auror as she was led to the security room Lucius was being held in. Whispers engulfed them as the ministry workers spoke of how Narcissa had not taken well of her husband being arrested.

The Auror guided Narcissa left and soon the whispers faded as they neared a large steel door. The Auror took out his wand and said a nonverbal incantation. Then he pressed his hand against the door and it soon swung open.

He led Narcissa into a very large room as the steel door slammed shut. This room, though, appeared to be a waiting room. Ahead, there were two large Aurors standing in front of a much simpler looking door.

At the sight of them, the two Aurors turned to the door and made many taps on it in what appeared to be a random order. Then, together they counted, and on three they both placed their hands on the door and waited. Finally, there was a click and the white door swung open. The two Aurors pointed their wands at the door as a safety precaution before allowing Narcissa and the Auror to go through.

Narcissa and the Auror walked into a large, white, dome-shaped room. Everything in the room was white. Across the room was a small, white bed, and on it sat Lucius, a small smile on his lips. The door to the room slowly closed, and as soon as the door 'clicked,' Narcissa dropped the Aurors arm and ran across the room. Lucius stood as she threw her arms around him, tears rolling slowly down her face.

"Lucius." She said it softly. He could sense her pain and was sorry. Sorry he had gotten caught and put her through such a mess. As he hugged his wife, he spotted the Auror approaching. Narcissa must have heard him too, for she had released him and turned. And then she spoke.

"Do you have it?" Lucius frowned. What are they…?

"Of course." The young Auror glanced behind him nervously. He pulled out six vials of a dark goopy substance. Narcissa turned to Lucius once more and yanked a hair from his head. Lucius' eyes narrowed.

Narcissa dropped the hair into one of the vials, then grabbed another one.

"Here." She handed him the vial she had just grabbed. "Drink it." Without hesitating, Lucius uncorked the vial and downed it quickly, cringing as the familiar taste of muck went down his throat. He squeezed his eyes shut as he felt his skin crawl with ice. And then the sensation stopped. He opened his eyes and spotted Narcissa with a mirror, which she produced seemingly out of nowhere. She handed it to him.

Looking into it, he reached up and touched his young, boyish face, short brown hair, and soft brown eyes. He was the young Auror. Looking up, he was surprised to find the Auror's face too was changing. A second later, Lucius was staring into the face of his sister-in-law.

"Bella." Lucius said it mostly to himself, but Bellatrix nodded anyway. She took the vial with Lucius' hair, uncorked it and drank. Now he was staring at himself.

"Quick, now." Narcissa said in a hushed voice. "Trade clothes." Lucius suppressed the red tinge that was beginning to form on his face.

"Hurry." They both turned around and stripped off their clothes facing the walls. Narcissa grabbed Lucius' white prison clothes and passed them to Bellatrix and grabbed her black robes and handed them to Lucius. Now Bellatrix looked exactly like the imprisoned Lucius.

"The young Auror is actually a muggle man we kidnapped a while ago. He's in a basement. Bella has been drinking polyjuice potion for months now, training as an Auror. All to save you."

Bellatrix grinned. "My work won't come without payment."

"Well," Narcissa continued, "we're going to leave and Bella is going to pretend she's you. They'll only check her once more tonight, and that will be after we leave." Narcissa stopped and Bellatrix continued.

"I have four more vials of the young Auror. Before the ministry opens the door to check on me in the morning, I'll down one of the vials. They'll see the young Auror and no Lucius. I'm sure you can imagine the ministry's reaction." She let out an icy laugh that bounced off the dome ceiling.

"We'll have half a day's head start to retreat to our home in the south. There'll be such chaos; they won't ever think to interrogate the young Auror until it's too late. Bella will be long gone and they'll never find the young Auror. Ever." Bellatrix nodded in agreement.

"Now let's go."

Narcissa's plan worked out exactly like she said it would. They escaped without trouble. And the second they had left the confines of the ministry, they had fled to their secret home. There, the ministry would never find them. They didn't even know the home existed.

* * *

"Wow." Nott rubbed the back of his head as Lucius explained their escape.

"Wow, indeed. If Draco hadn't betrayed me, I would have been back at our home in the first place." Lucius' face soured at the memory. Nott's expression softened, though.

"Ah, Lucius. Don't punish the kid too much." Lucius' looked at him incredulously.

"Wait. Just listen." Nott could see the impatience building in Lucius even in the dimness of the fencing room.

"After Theodore finished his fifth year, I allowed him to go with his mother to the English Channel. She was visiting an old friend, and he tagged along. Well, when they came home, you'll never believe the story Theodore told me." Nott took a breath before continuing. "Apparently, every morning, when Theodore went down to breakfast, he spotted Draco." At this Lucius' eyes narrowed a fraction.

"And do you know what Draco was doing?" The question was rhetorical. "He was talking to himself!" Nott nearly laughed at Lucius' humiliated face, but felt it best to restrain himself.

"Obviously, Draco's been under a lot of stress. And stress makes a person behave in unusual ways." Nott shrugged. Malfoy appeared a little pink in the cheeks as he wondered how many more people had seen his son talking to himself. Disgraceful.

"I find it hard to believe that stress was what caused him to betray me. But it's not my biggest priority right now. Once Narcissa has finished retrieving her things, we're leaving the manor at once." Nott tilted his head slightly at this.

"Narcissa and I had been at our home in France. We stayed there until our house elves informed us our manor was clear. They're keeping lookout right now, incase Aurors decide they want to double check the manor. We came back just long enough to—" Nott leaned in again but Lucius shut his mouth and grimaced.

"Maybe another time." Lucius walked briskly from the dim room.

* * *

**A/N**: Wow. There it is. I can't tell you enough how much it pained me to right this chapter. It was definitely a breath of fresh air when I was able to move on to the next chapter. I knew the information above needed to be mentioned somewhere and unfortunately I really couldn't move on without it. It needed to be done! It just took me fifty years to figure out how. Geeze…I had to give the date in many places because I knew it would get even more confusing otherwise. Actually, I had to create a time line just to finish this chapter because I kept confusing myself. It seems to have helped a lot. So there's something to make fic writing easier. A time line. Okay. **Next chapter**: We get to see Harry and Hermione again.

Still have questions about this chapter or previous ones? Just ask and I'll answer in my profile thingy.

_Lana_


	17. Ella

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters. All credit must be given to J.K. **

The Cradle Will Fall

Chapter 16

* * *

The harsh rays of sunlight filtering through the tree above were what woke Harry. With an agonizing groan, he pried his eyes open. His throbbing head was resting on Hermione's abdomen and his feet were tangled in a bush. For a moment he thought he was still at Hogwarts, but when he went to sit up, the shooting pain from his leg reminded him of where he was and what had happened.

Hermione slowly stirred. She too had been awoken by the sunshine, but had not bothered to open her eyes until Harry had first gotten up, not wanting to disturb his sleep. Knowing he was awake, though, she did not hesitate to open her eyes and prop herself up on her arms. Her entire body ached like she had just fallen from a building. She sneered with disdain at the memory. Lucius had finally had the last laugh. It was more of a cackle, she supposed. But had he really been triumphant? Her thoughts were pierced by Harry's deep voice.

"Do you feel well, Hermione?" Harry cringed at the lunacy of his question, knowing full well she was in as much pain as he. Regardless, she smiled and nodded.

"Yes. I mean, I'm definitely in pain, but nothing life threatening." She tried to comfort him by sounding optimistic, but she had not convinced him. He frowned as he brushed his fingers over a large purple bruise on her arm. She tried her best not to wince.

"My leg is broken. I don't think I have enough energy or concentration to apparate anywhere." He reached down and adjusted his leg as he spoke. Hermione frowned.

"I don't think I can apparate either." She pushed her long hair away from her face and tried to concentrate on a destination, but it was no use. Her thoughts kept slipping back to the throbbing pain throughout her body. If she had her wand she could try and heal their injuries.

"Perhaps," Hermione began with reluctance, "there is a village somewhere around here where we can contact Hogwarts or the ministry." She eyed Harry's leg as she completely sat up.

Harry was silent as he thought of other alternatives. After a few moments he nodded. "I guess we're going to have to." He then began to grab sticks from around them. Hermione sat silently as she watched Harry create a makeshift splint for his leg.

"There." He tied a scrap of fabric torn from his shirt to his leg. It would have to do. When he looked up and grinned, Hermione realized she had been staring at him. She could feel herself blushing.

"Hermione," he said softly as he reached out and traced his fingers across her neck lovingly. Hermione stiffened as he leaned in and kissed her. After a second, Harry pulled away with a confused frown.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing." She had responded a little too quickly, and he knew it as well.

"Could we talk?" Harry pulled himself back against a tree as he became suddenly serious.

"About what?" Hermione knew what he wanted to talk about, but she wasn't sure how she was going to respond. She inclined her head a fraction and was able to see Malfoy Manor through the trees. "Shouldn't we be concentrating on getting home?" Harry shook his head slowly.

"We're safe for now. We have time." Hermione bit the inside of her cheek as he continued to frown.

"What's between you and Malfoy?" He lifted an eyebrow accusingly as he recalled all the moments he had seen Malfoy near her, talking to her, smiling at her. "I know I've been a bit neglectful of you, but I've still noticed how he had attached himself to your side, even if no one else did."

Hermione felt something constrict within her. "I thought I liked him." She thought bitterly to the previous night, when he had allowed his father to kill them—attempt to kill them. She had told Draco that she loved him. She felt her cheeks begin to warm at the thought, regretting her words. '_I didn't know what I was saying. It was a lapse of judgment_.' She squeezed her eyes shut trying to believe her thoughts.

"He's the biggest arsehole at our school. How could you have liked him? He hurt you, Hermione. "He was referring to all the times Malfoy had made Hermione's life hell, including the rape. He comprehended from Lucius' conversation that it had been Draco Malfoy all this time. Harry clenched his teeth as he tried to keep his anger under control. He didn't want to explode at Hermione. It wasn't she that he was angry at.

"It's not like I knew, you know. I only found out recently." She opened her eyes as she realized Lucius had taken Daniel away the same day she had found out. Had he known all along? Had Draco known all along? Had it been part of their plan—to destroy who she was and what she had accomplished—because she was a muggleborn, had 'dirty blood'? Of course. It was clear now. Why did she ever believe Draco was different? Draco reformed? What bullshit. She looked into Harry's eyes and saw the anger burning in them. She wondered if his animosity was directed towards her, and also wondered whether her eyes too reflected the sudden anger and humiliation she felt.

"I'm sorry." She said it silently and caught Harry off guard. He hadn't been expecting an apology. He had been prepared for a long winded explanation as to how she had allowed Malfoy to wrap her around his finger. But no, she was accepting that she had made a mistake and was apologizing. He supposed it made more sense than an actual explanation.

"Do you still have feelings for him?" Harry wasn't sure if this too was a silly question. Should he assume that because they had been abandoned by Malfoy at the manor that she would stop liking him? She was looking down at the ground as she fiddled with a twig.

'_Do I still have feelings for him? Why do you ask these questions, Harry? They sound simple to you, but they require so much thinking to answer. Malfoy humiliated me, impregnated me, abandoned me. Do I still like Malfoy? Yes.'_

"No." She looked up to meet his eyes. Her gaze belied nothing and he accepted this as truth.

Both Hermione and Harry snapped their heads towards the dirt road at the sound of old, wooden wheels rolling heavily across the ground.

"It's a carriage leaving the manor." Hermione said as she peeked through the bush. "Come on. We can follow it out of these hills and away from that manor. Maybe it'll pass through a town where we can find our way home. Can you walk?" She held her hand out to Harry and he stood awkwardly as he rested on his stiff leg with the improvised splint.

"Lend me your arm and I'll be fine." Complying, Hermione proffered her arm. The two followed the carriage at a safe distance.

* * *

"Are you okay?" Hermione asked worriedly as Harry stopped to breathe. The carriage had turned down another road a few minutes earlier and now they were making their way down the last slope towards a tiny village.

"Yeah. You?" Harry nodded to his death grip on her arm. Hermione shook her head.

"No, Harry. Don't worry about it." He swallowed hard before continuing down the slope. Hermione smiled at how odd the scene of the tall Harry clutching to her must have looked. She was pulled from her thoughts when Harry stopped again. She hardly minded. He was in pain.

"Do you two need help?" Harry and Hermione froze. They skillfully scanned their surroundings, their gazes finally settling on an old lady emerging from the trees directly to their right. Hermione sent Harry a nervous glance.

"No. We're just heading down to the village." He pointed to the dozen houses at the bottom of the dirt road.

"But you look like you've been attacked by trolls! I mean, if such things existed." Harry forced a polite smile. He had a feeling of what was coming next.

"You two come with me. My home is just inside the woods here. I'll fix you up." She motioned for them to follow. "You're just in luck. I was just preparing lunch." She smiled warmly and turned on her heel, disappearing into the trees. Hermione looked at the spot where she had occupied only moments ago.

"I am hungry," Harry said resignedly. She sighed and nodded reluctantly. Getting home was going to take longer than expected.

* * *

"There we are." Ella, they found to be the old lady's name, said, as she finished wrapping the last bandage. It was all finely done, but Hermione did find her smaller, unbandaged cuts and scrapes to be stinging a bit.

"You seem to know what you're doing." Harry pointed out as he examined his leg.

"Ah yes! I used to be a—a—" Ella stumbled as she fished for words.

"Nurse?" Hermione suggested.

"Yes. A nurse." Hermione lifted an eyebrow to Harry and they both silently agreed that she was odd. She did appear a bit senile, though.

"You two, make yourselves at home. I'm going to make lunch now." She began to hum as she bounced up and out of the small living room and through the kitchen door, leaving Hermione and Harry to sit in silence.

Hermione tilted her head up as she examined the contents of the room. There appeared to be crosses slung about everywhere. There was a very large portrait of Jesus hanging near the window, and the eyes of the portrait appeared to follow her wherever she moved.

Harry too noticed all of this, and also spotted a very large bible on an end table. He narrowed his eyes a fraction as he began to wonder about Ella.

"You think she thinks us freaks?" He asked Hermione silently.

"Hm?" She pulled her eyes away from the large portrait and settled them on Harry. He looked a bit worried.

"What do you mean?"

"No doubt she's wondering how the hell we got ourselves so beat up. Just hasn't said anything yet, has she? But I remember my uncle muttering about freaks wandering the streets in bathrobes a few years back. You don't think she thinks we're part of some cult?" Harry motioned to their abandoned, bloody robes that were sitting in the corner. Hermione blew a strand of hair from her face as she contemplated.

"Guess we'll find out," she said humorously, attempting to lighten the mood. Harry eyed the large portrait worriedly. She shrugged tiredly, not wanting to put too much thought into it, lest she exhaust herself once more.

"If we just had our wands," Harry muttered as he shifted to where he was sprawled across the sofa, forcing Hermione to scoot away, "we could have defended ourselves last night." He closed his eyes sleepily.

"Don't you find it a little odd that Lucius had thrown us off his balcony," Hermione asked as she voiced her earlier suspicions.

"Lucius Malfoy is an odd person. Or a mad one, rather." He kept his eyes closed. She was thankful he did. The memory of Lucius buckling his pants as he hovered over her had suddenly shot through the haze that was her mind. She felt hot tears prick her eyes and she immediately pressed her palms to them. Like father, like son.

"No, I mean, he said Voldemort didn't care that he was disposing of us." Her voice was so steady she surprised herself. "If that was true, and he was really going to kill us, you'd think he'd use a killing curse or torture us himself." Harry opened his eyes now and listened to Hermione attentively. "Instead, he left a chance for us to survive. I mean, you're Harry fucking Potter." He grinned at her use of profanity. "Malfoy knows better. You're a walking good luck charm."

"Or bad luck charm." Despite it being depressingly true, they both laughed to themselves. Harry sighed.

"I feel really vulnerable without my wand," Harry muttered to break the silence. Hermione took a breath to respond, but never got the chance. Ella burst through the kitchen door, eyes wide and waving a knife.

* * *

A/N: It's been a long time. I've finally finished re-doing chapter 17. Like I said before, I didn't really want to post 16 without 17 being done first. That way, if I didn't like how something went in 17, I would still be able to go back and alter 16. Get me? Maybe not! Oh well. 'Snot important. I need to do some last minute editing for 17 and then it'll be up. I'm just really tired from school at the moment. I swear 17 is really done! REALLY! Don't want to give too much away, but the last four words are 'bastard in no time.' See! Of course, who's to say I'm lying and when I actually write 17 I just make sure the ending ends in 'bastard in no time?' ha! You'll never know! I'm not lying, though. ANYway!

Until next time, Lana.

Next: Lucius recounts how everything came together and Ron receives a letter.


	18. An Amusing Story

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters. All credit must be given to J.K. **

A/N: Here it is. It pained me to edit this thing. Towards the middle, I tried so hard to keep my tenses straight, but I really couldn't. I kept getting confused. You know, like when you say a word over and over again until it starts sounding foreign? Like that. Oh well:D!

The Cradle Will Fall

Chapter 17

"STOP! Set it down!" Harry's arms instinctively flew up to shield his face from the mad woman. Hermione's eyes widened in disbelief. Ella looked at the two frightened teens with confusion.

"Please," Harry said softly as he eyed the knife she held in her limp hand, "put the knife away." He could hear the nervous crack in his own voice. So many times he'd been pitted against Voldemort, only to be brought down by a raving mad old lady. What a cruel joke. The nervous air was broken by the sudden, barking laughter of the old woman. She was clutching herself as she laughed and Harry slowly backed away towards Hermione.

"You think I was trying to kill you?" She wiped away her amused tears, "I was chopping carrots when I overhead you, is all." Her smile fell into a thin line and her brow furrowed as she became serious. Hermione stood cautiously and slowly made her way completely behind Harry, clutching his arm protectively. They both remained silent.

"Tell me," she began, her hand moving towards her apron, "You two didn't happen to come from Malfoy Manor, did you?" Hermione felt her tongue grow thick and dry in her mouth as she watched Ella withdraw a wand from her apron.

* * *

Draco leaned over the toilet and threw up for the third time since they had left the manor. There was a light knock on the bathroom door followed by his aunt's voice.

"Draco, are you feeling well?" She said with concern. He'd never been close with his Aunt Bella, seeing as how she had spent his entire life in Azkaban. Despite her slight insanity, she tried her best to make him feel comfortable.

"FINE!" Draco shouted a bit too harshly as he wiped his mouth. He immediately felt guilty of his attitude. "Sorry," he said softer, "I'm just bit dizzy." That part was true. Every time he thought about the past few days he became extremely dizzy and overwhelmed.

"I'll be in the kitchen if you need me, love." He heard his aunt's footsteps fade away.

They had evacuated their manor after a terrified house elf had informed them that Aurors were closing in on the home. They had left by floo immediately, arriving in a tiny, abandoned cottage. From there, they apparated into a dark, cold forest. They then proceeded to walk two miles to their second home, which was situated on a steep, rocky hill overlooking the misty forest. At the time, Draco had cursed his mother for packing so much luggage, but now, he couldn't take his mind off what his father had told him earlier, when they had finally been settled.

"How did you find out?" Draco had asked his father earlier. Lucius had reclined in his chair and had remained silent for several moments. He finally sighed in irritation.

"It's still hard for me to believe that my only child has been so ungrateful," he had said in a contemptuous voice. "Nonetheless, I think you'll find this story very amusing." Lucius had smiled scornfully. Draco had kept his face blank, afraid of upsetting his father. When his father had finished the story, Draco had begun to feel lightheaded.

When Lucius had escaped the ministry cell, he was hidden at the home they were currently staying at. A family friend, Rita Skeeter, had been called by Narcissa to assist Lucius. The day after Lucius' escape, Rita was asked to follow Draco around to see what the traitorous boy was up to. Lucius had had a suspicion that ministry officials might try and interrogate Draco concerning Lucius' escape. Instead of ministry officials, Rita Skeeter, in animagus form, had found Draco with Hermione Granger. Skeeter had been elated with her finding, seeing as how Hermione had humiliated her over two years ago, and had returned this information to Lucius immediately.

He had been less than pleased about it than her. He had been furious, in fact. First Draco turned him into the Aurors and then he's socializing with mudbloods. Lucius had sent Rita to investigate her findings further. For days she had followed Draco. She had discovered that he was with Granger often, but never much in public. One day, though, Skeeter had found that Hermione was meeting with another Slytherin—Blaise Zabini. When she had listened to their exchange, she had felt distressed at having to force down the urge to write a story on her findings. She had made a promise to Lucius, though.

She had returned to him and informed him that according to Blaise Zabini, Draco had fathered a child to the mudblood. Lucius' face had been so red he had looked ill. If he wasn't such a frightening man, she would have found it amusing. Narcissa had done her best to calm him down, but it was no use. Irate, he hurried to a large cabinet and searched hurriedly through the potions stocked within it. Finally, he pulled out a jug of polyjuice potion. Lucius was going to remove Draco from that filthy school, even if he had to abduct him.

Two days later, Lucius and Macnair had arrived at Hogwarts, disguised as McGonagall and Draco. They had needed to be able to walk through the halls without being suspicious. Lucius had known McGonagall had class at the moment, but where Draco was, he had had no clue. He had to keep on his toes in case Draco came walking down the halls towards them. They had taken care to make sure their flasks of polyjuice were full before they had set off on their journey.

The two men had walked casually down the halls of Hogwarts. Lucius, disguised as his son, had stopped at Draco's door, found by Skeeter, and had muttered the password. They had stepped into the common room and had found it empty. They had checked his bedroom and bathroom, just in case. Nothing. Without Draco in his chambers, it would be near impossible to kidnap him. They couldn't grab him out in the open. Irritated, Lucius had stormed out of the room and walked briskly down the halls, Macnair following closely behind. No one had taken any notice to them.

Draco was with the mudblood. He must have been. Lucius had narrowed his eyes and turned to Macnair to tell of his suspicions. Macnair, or McGonagall, had nodded. Lucius had slunk away and hid behind a large statue in the shadows.

Macnair had stopped a passing girl, a familiar redhead. He had asked her where Hermione was and the girl had looked at the 'teacher' skeptically. Maybe in her common room, she had said as she pointed to the portrait directly behind her. Perfect. Macnair had thanked the girl and meandered over to the portrait casually.

Macnair had knocked on the door, and after a few moments and an exchange with a confused Draco, he was inside the room. Lucius had cursed under his breath. Macnair should have kept the boy in the room. Then they'd have him cornered. When Draco had been out of sight, Lucius crept over to the portrait and knocked. Macnair had let him in.

"You idiot! Why'd you let Draco go?" Lucius had felt his hand moving of its own accord towards his wand.

"He said he was watching that kid," Macnair had said as he pointed to Daniel, "I didn't know what to say. I told him I could watch him." Lucius had shaken his head in disgust. If he had chosen someone smarter, they'd be nearly out of the castle by now. Skeeter had a story to do and Bella and Rodolphus had been called by the Dark Lord. Macnair had been the only one available. Lucius had raised his hand and swung hard, hitting Macnair at the back of the head. Because of Macnair's slow thinking, they would have to wait for Draco to return before they could abduct him. That was when Lucius had first laid eyes on Daniel.

He had been absolutely revolted. A half-blood Malfoy. What a disgrace. But then he had formulated a plan. Perhaps he could keep the child. Perhaps he and Narcissa could raise him as their own. He had clearly failed with Draco. This was a perfect opportunity for a second chance. Brilliant. He would take the mudblood back with them. Give her a good scare. Maybe obliviate her. He would improvise as he went.

The two had waited in relative silence for Draco. Lucius had given Macnair an annoyed look as his potion wore off. Macnair hadn't been watching the time. The only sound had come from the light snoring from the infant boy. After what had felt like forever, they heard heavy footsteps outside the door. Lucius had leapt up and hid in the shadows as Draco burst through the door.

Draco had only had time to widen his eyes before Macnair hit him with a spell, knocking him out cold. Macnair took another sip of polyjuice potion after spotting himself in the mirror. Lucius had instructed the other man to discreetly take Draco and Daniel back to the manor (he hadn't trusted the man enough to tell of his other home). Rita Skeeter had informed him earlier that the Aurors had stopped watching Malfoy Manor, for the moment, at least. Macnair had nodded and Lucius retreated from the room.

Draco had come back without the mudblood. No matter—he would find her himself. He had walked briskly down staircases and halls unsuccessfully. He grabbed a Hufflepuff's arm in vexation and had asked her in a harsh tone where Hermione Granger was. The frightened girl had stuttered before responding that she had seen her waiting in the Entrance Hall. He had smiled to himself as he made his way down the hall as Draco. When he had approached the Entrance Hall, he spotted her.

Lucius had told him how he had portkeyed the two back to the manor. How he had knocked Potter cold and had had Hermione moaning on the ground. That was what made him sick.

"May I be excused?" He had asked hurriedly. Lucius smiled knowingly and nodded.

He'd been in the bathroom since, trying to clear his mind. There was knocking at the door again.

"Draco? Come out. We're doing your hair now." The muffled voice of his aunt pierced his thoughts. Potter and Hermione were dead. He needed to be on his father's good side to preserve himself. He wasn't worried about Daniel anymore. He'd be fine.

* * *

If anyone had chosen to look over at Ron Weasley at that moment, they'd have thought he'd seen a spider—he was so pale. His mouth was open in shock and he felt as though he were about to lose his breakfast. He scanned the letter in his hands once more. Malfoy had to be crazy. Must have been. Hermione and Harry weren't dead! Couldn't be. And yet, he couldn't stop his heart from beating wildly. But Malfoy was crazy! The letter was proof.

He had practically written a novel. The entirety of the letter consisted of Malfoy talking about his summer vacation and how he met some boy. It seemed like a bunch of babble. None of it made sense. He was claiming to be a changed person. Oh please. He had seemed the same all year. But Ron still couldn't understand why he was telling him, of all people. And then he had turned the parchment over. There had been more writing on the back. It was less neat and appeared to have been scribbled hastily.

_Sorry, Weasley. Hermione and Harry are dead. I guess, in a way, you could say I killed them. I didn't really. But I didn't help them. I could never be a Gryffindor. I don't have enough courage. I've been so caught up in self-preservation I've hardly noticed the difference between right and wrong. I thought I could try and be brave. I was wrong. I guess you don't choose your parents, right? You know that better than I._

Ron's head snapped up to the spot where Malfoy normally sat. Empty. And empty were the spots on either side of him. It was more babble, but the part about his friends being dead was easily comprehended.

'_What do I do? If they're really…dead, I should go to Dumbledore. But—'_ He looked up to where Dumbledore normally sat. Empty. And the seat next to him, McGonagall's seat—empty. They had both been called away that morning. He had seen them himself, leaving as breakfast started. He had no one trustworthy to go to.

He could feel the anger begin to stir within himself. He knew it—knew that no good could ever come from a fucking Malfoy. Merlin! He had heard rumors that Malfoy had been seeing Hermione. It had seemed so farfetched at the time. But perhaps it was true. And now she was gone.

"Ron, are you okay," Ginny asked silently, "You're face is bright red and your hands are shaking." She was troubled by her brother's behavior.

"I'm fine. I'll see you later." He stood up quickly, catching the attention of all the Gryffindors around him as dashed out of the hall. Once out of the Great Hall, he threw the castle door's open and sprinted down towards the quidditch pitch.

Right before the entrance to the pitch sat an old, rickety broom shed. He slid to a stop in front of the broom shed and fumbled with the doorknob, finally forcing his hands to stop shaking enough to throw the door open. He glanced at his worn, beat up Cleansweep 11 and shook his head. Instead, he grabbed Harry's new Nimbus 2003 and was in the air in seconds. He had no clue where he was going.

"Please, please! I hope Malfoy's been a stupid boy." Ron crossed his fingers as he produced the letter Malfoy had sent him. He pulled his wand from his robe and tapped the parchment. It glowed blue and Ron let out a laugh. _'Too easy_.' Malfoy had forgotten to place an anti-tracking spell on the letter. Ron would kill the bastard in no time.

* * *

Review! Pretty please?


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